Handle with Care
by AddriannaDestiny
Summary: Caroline Forbes is a rising star, she's a perky and bubbly singer with a strong personality but with the voice of an angel while her demanding manager is the closest thing she knows to a devil. Klaus Mikaelson is snarky, controlling and sometimes a complete ass, he is also the best in the industry. AU meme/AH
1. Welcome to the Circus

"_Close your eyes, give me your hand, darling  
Do you feel my heart beating?  
Do you understand?  
Do you feel the same?  
Am I only dreaming?  
Is this burning…"_

There was a clicking sound and Caroline's voice wasn't accompanied by music anymore, she slid down her big earphones and leaned her head to the side, the man on the other side of the mirror pushed a button down and made his voice echo inside the booth.

"That was wonderful gorgeous but I'd like to redo the last verses before we do the chorus."

Caroline raised her thumbs up and adjusted the earphones over her ears, she was very focused when the music started again and like she did all morning, Caroline started singing perfectly on cue and with a sweetness that oozed from her naturally.

On the other side of the mirror, the man turned on his chair and spread his arms. "She is remarkable Klaus."

Klaus displayed a set of dashing dimples surrendered to the veracity. "Marcel... I believe those were my very words when I called you earlier."

Marcel smiled turning to the recording table in front of him, he adjusted a few buttons and closed his eyes for a few moments, his accurate ears didn't betray him, Caroline sang perfectly on key and just as she hit the chorus for a second time he turned to Klaus again. "See those?" he pointed at the amount of hair in his arms rising as her voice filled the Studio. "Those only come up when I know there is a hit coming and that girl can deliver it."

Klaus swiftly put his phone away and addressed Marcel with a squint. "Does that mean that you will produce her first record?"

He tapped his chin with a slow move. "You know that I have all the big names barking at my door, don't you?"

"That's entirely because you are the producer of the moment and your talent is finally being recognized." Klaus cunningly complimented him.

Marcel rolled his eyes. "Now you are just pampering me so that I produce your girl."

"I discovered Caroline singing on a small moldy dusty Pub and now she's singing for the great Marcel Gerard_, The King. _I know what I'm doing and so should you when I'm offering you a chance to be part of the success of the next singer of the Super Bowl."

Marcel laughed. "You never do anything for the smallest goal."

"May I remind you of the last singer I managed?"

The other big man grunted. "I'm surprised she allowed you to step down from guiding her career, so… _out of the blue._" he joked.

"She was already _Rolling in the deep._" Klaus launched with cheesy attire.

Marcel laughed loudly but he knew if Klaus traded one of the biggest singers in the planet for an unknown singer with no record under her belt yet, it was only because he believed in the raw talent of this girl, as he turned to look at her once again, he noticed how striking she was but there was something else about her that was capturing, there was an unexplained energy that he could feel prickling at him even across the glass, as if she was a natural container of light and life just waiting to explode.

Caroline had something that came to her naturally, he couldn't take his eyes away from her and Marcel couldn't remember the last time that happened with an artist, with time everyone just sounded the same to him.

"Should I sing the entire song again or just specific part of it?" Caroline asked with an excitement that was as well seen as unusual to Marcel.

"I've heard enough Goldilocks, come out and join us." Marcel asked her.

Caroline stepped out of the recording booth with a big smile, he could tell how nervous she was by the way she kept pressing her palms together and glancing over to Klaus, hoping to catch a glimpse of what happened on this side while she sang.  
As usual Klaus was unreadable and she huffed a little facing away from him, it wouldn't hurt if he contradicted her belief that he wasn't human just for once, she had no choice but to focus on the other man, the one with bulky arms was eyeing her in a funny way and Caroline fought the grumble in her stomach by pressing it with a hand over the long blouse that fell down her shoulder.

"Feel free to stretch out my torment…" she mumbled anxiously.

Marcel exchanged one single look with Klaus and swayed on his chair a few times before he parted his lips with a big smile. "Are you ready to be famous?"

Caroline widened her eyes and opened her mouth at the same time. "Are you saying that you will produce me?"

"You are a raw diamond that needs to be polished but with the right songs and with the right beat… you are the next best thing." he searched for Klaus, as expected the smirk was the only outlet he was having from his old friend.

Caroline jumped a few times excited, she clapped all giggly and with that she made both men break into a laughter, her happiness was that contagious. "Seriously?" she asked again over excited.

"Start thinking of a good title for the record of the year and come back next week ready for a relentless recording session, be prepared for brutal working hours, no sleep and a lot of yelling, I get cranky when things don't turn out well after the first 10 times." Marcel warned her.

Caroline quietly laughed, she could handle grumpy like an expert, it was the only mood she knew from Klaus. "I'm ready, I'm more than ready for this. I'll do whatever it takes." she said with determination.

"Keep that enthusiasm then because we will need it." Marcel grabbed his phone. "I'm sending you my schedule Klaus, I have a single that I'm working with Bono now so we'll have to reserve Caroline's studio hours after that…"

Caroline silently mouthed _U2 _awestruck and she was still a bit dazed when she left with Klaus.

"He produced Justin Timberlake and Beyonce!" she exclaimed excited once they were alone.

Klaus was used to the celebrity life so obviously he ignored the fangirl unravel that came from Caroline, he was trying to fit her busy schedule with Marcel's while she gushed on and on about all the stars that recorded in this studio, like he didn't know them all, quite honestly he managed most of them at some point and he was aware of how much the huge sample stars paid to be produced by Marcel while today he agreed to get his cut only after Caroline's CD hit the market.

For Klaus that was the big accomplishment of the day, the confidence from Marcel was just what Klaus needed to start the right buzz around Caroline, of course that she was clueless to all that and continued to list all the famous who achieved that one hit due to Marcel's magic behind a set of buttons that improved a bunch of screeching voices that inevitably flopped once they reached the live tours.

Klaus was aiming very high concerning Caroline and he almost felt tempt to end her random rambles to tell her just that, however Caroline was far from listening to anything right now.  
She was busy trying out different scenarios with the new achievement.

"_And now we will play the new hit single from Caroline Forbes, the artist produced by The King_." she said spreading her hands apart at the same time the elevator doors opened for them.

She was jittery, bouncing all the way to his car like she was listening to a famous radio station playing her song and she completely missed the car coming her way inside of the parking lot.

Klaus pulled her arm to make her stop and kept her close to him. "Let us try not to make it a post-mortem album."

Caroline laughed turning her head to face his deep blue eyes. "That would be epic as well."

He restrained from rolling his eyes but still sighed distraught. "Can you try to focus for ten minutes Caroline? We need to go over your schedule for today."

Her shoulders fell a little and she grimaced with his words. "What do you mean? I thought the audition was the entire plan for today."

As always Klaus didn't linger too closely to her and walked to his car unlocking it and opening the passenger door for her. "Of course sweetheart, shall we go back to the hotel and sleep for the rest of the day? Because that's what artists do, you know… they just slack all day and the money pours down from the ceiling." he leaned his head to the side with a forced smile.

Caroline dragged her flat ballerina shoes. "You don't have to be so cheerful all the time." she complained getting inside of his luxurious car.

"I don't get paid to be nice." he reminded her as he closed the door on her side.

"What if I don't sell enough copies to pay you?" she asked him as soon as he settled on the driver's seat.

"The idea is to make you rich enough so that I can take my millionaire fee later on." he started the car with a sly hint to a smile. "And if you can't pay me, I'm sure we will find a way to please me." he started their short ride.

"You are so gross!" Caroline pushed her tongue out disgusted and crossed her arms. "And inappropriate… crude and crass." she added with a grouse. "And ugly."

"It's with glee that I accept how well you perceive me." he laughed only to spike her.

"Is there still time to add how much you are _not _funny?"

"Always love." he parked the car in front of a building.

Caroline's entire body ached in anticipation. "Do I have to?"

"There's nothing like a good Yoga class to tame that wild spirit of yours."

"I don't like Yoga, it feels like I'm stretching for some really kinky sex positions and the instructor has this really weird vibe, she's always ordering me around with a polite low voice. _The Eagle comes from within Caroline." _she flawlessly mimicked her instructor.

"I will pick you up in one hour for vocal couching." Klaus simply stated.

"Fine, I'm going to stick my butt in the air and pretend to be all sexy while I'm doing it." she still protested but before exiting the car Caroline looked at him doubtful. "Wait, when do I eat?"

"Don't worry love, food will be provided as the nutritionist planned."

"She better not come near me again with a lot of stuff that tastes like haystack and a bunch of pills because I will shove those damn pills up her ass." Caroline warned him with a menacing finger pointed at him.

"Hum… we might need to squeeze in a few classes on good manners as well."

Caroline slammed the door of the car as one loud reply but he was smiling as he drove away, probably the thing he enjoyed the most about Caroline was the way she was so genuine.  
Granted that she really wanted this but she wasn't willing to change her entire personality just to make him happy and that was so refreshing that it only pushed Klaus further.

* * *

"Ok, let's try this one bar above." The professor told Caroline before he pressed a piano key down.

She nodded and did as he asked of her, he was very pleased with the way their session ended and clapped at her once they were done with their lesson.

"Very good Caroline, you have a good ear and you learn fast." he closed the piano waiting for Klaus to join them.

Klaus was outside emerged in a phone call for an hour now and Caroline rested her arms over the piano watching him, she slowly gazed along his strong features, the rough stubble and the curly dirty-blonde hair, she was unconsciously biting her pinky as she outlined his lustful lips with her eyes.  
As a rule Klaus was wearing a tight Henley under a cool leather jacket, he was a man of necklaces and Caroline counted at least three of them under the purple V-collar, she also identified a very firm chest and by addition a fit body that she rather not notice.

Klaus was very professional and he kept their relationship exactly on those terms, there was never too much proximity between them and whenever they were alone, he was always doing something, either fondling over his phone or his iPad, personal contact was kept to the minimal and Caroline was thankful for that, he was her manager and her entire career was resting on his big hands, it was a mistake to place anything else from hers at the reach of those long fingers of his.

"He is rather handsome, isn't he?"

Her young teacher asked just next to her, when Caroline looked at him, she saw nothing but lust in him and that sparkled a tiny laughter from her. "Well… he is attractive in this annoying sort of way." she admitted.

"He is too good-looking and that accent of his…" he groaned.

Caroline laughed again but she closed her songbook thoughtful, she wasn't going down that path, he was hot but his temper and mood swings were a turn off. "I will see you tomorrow?" she asked her professor.

Josh beamed at her. "Make sure you bring him with you."

She gave him a side look before leaving the room, just as she was closing the glass door behind her Klaus ended his call and she suspected something was headed her way by the look he gave her.

"We need to go back to the hotel because you have to get ready for an appearance tonight."

"An appearance where?" she asked before complaining with a loud sound as he pulled her hand, visibly she wasn't walking fast enough for him.

Klaus was already reaching his car. "A local renowned artist is opening a gallery tonight and anyone who isn't on Cannes this year is attending this so I arranged for someone to take you under their wing."

Caroline slumped against his car. "You mean that some celebrity from a reality show accepted to pity escort me to the door and take a few pictures with me."

"You have two hours to get ready." Klaus warned her serious.

"I can't wait." she mockingly grinned at him. "Some artist on crack opens another useless gallery for his abstract work and I get to make an appearance that no one will care about."

Klaus didn't bother answering her, he had too many things to deal with at the moment, he couldn't afford to be upset over another tantrum from Caroline.

"Do I even get to choose what I'm wearing?" she looked at him slightly hopeful.

"It's all been arranged for already, Forbes."

She clasped her lips and narrowed her eyes at him, if hatred could kill, he would be easily choking by now.

* * *

The hairstylist shook his hand. "Girl, you need to sink those two gorgeous feet down on the ground and tell him, _hell to the no_. Do you know what I mean?"

Caroline exhaled loudly. "I know but he doesn't listen, I've tried telling him that I only want to sing but he keeps filling my days with all this stuff that I don't want to do."

The young man with orange long hair closed his eyes for a second. "I bet he thinks those dimples of his will excuse him every time…"

Caroline cringed a little when Lamar pulled her long blond locks a bit carelessly and lost in the conversation. "I don't know about that, I became immune to them during the first month we worked together."

Lamar lowered his head and pierced her through the mirror. "You can be honest with me Care, has anything ever happened between the two of you? Working late all those nights and sharing the same hotel and all?"

Caroline eyed him with a crazy display of expressive eyes. "Never, I don't think he even finds me pretty."

"I don't play on your team sweety but the man had to be dead not to salute you every time you walk into a room."

"If he has, I haven't noticed." Caroline cocked an eyebrow. "And I think I would notice because no one is that cocky without validation."

"Amen to that girl." Lamar snapped his fingers. "Our Lord was not sleeping when Klaus Mikaelson was conceived."

Caroline laughed, it wasn't something hard for her to do but this last month was turning out stressful and honestly she felt as if Klaus was demanding more from her than she could deliver.  
Lamar used a few hair clips and strapped the locks on the side of her head, he left the back bounce free and with a bunch of wild loose curls, he smiled at her heading for the door when there was a knock.

Caroline wasn't sure if she should dread the moment, her dress was here and she didn't know what to expect, when Lamar unzipped the protective cover around it she almost smeared her cheek with lipstick, the dress was beautiful and she quickly left the last touches of makeup for later.

She jumped from her chair and rushed to Lamar. "I saw one of these in the Dior store downstairs."

"And you say that nothing ever happened between you and Klaus?" Lamar asked with a low dragged tone.

Caroline quizzically looked at him, she couldn't understand the suspicion at all. "We fight and pick on each other the entire time." she clarified while opening her robe and greedily getting into the exquisite dress.

"Honey, do you know how much a suite in this hotel costs?" Lamar asked with a hand tucking at his waist.

"More than you make?" she ventured innocently.

"I have to curl a lot of celeb hair to afford a night in here and you are currently occupying a master suite next to his not to mention that he is shopping for you in the most expensive shop inside the Five Star hotel…" Lamar lowered his chin with a gentle scowl. "And he knows your measures really well."

Caroline closed the zipper on the side of her tight white dress with a slow glance at Lamar. "Klaus has a big management agency or something…"

"I know that you come from some small town that God forsaken into oblivion but homeboy is paying for all of this and I'm sure he is expecting something in return, if you catch my drift." Lamar went back to his things so he could start packing up.

Caroline took in his words with a wary expression.

* * *

Klaus checked his watch unpleased, he dove into his suit pocket for the car keys as soon as he heard her heels approaching with a small race. "You are five minutes late." he lifted his eyes to scold her but he wasn't quite expecting the angelic figure.

"I'm sorry, I took too long deciding on the shoes." she quickly opened the door before he could react and got inside the car.

Klaus' brain took a little longer to restart but he went around the car as soon as it did, he found Caroline waiting for him with a puzzled face, she was holding his iPad and he kick-started everything again inside of his head. "You should read and memorize the pages I left open, it always looks good to say you admire the artist and actually know his name when the reporters ask you."

"I have to lie?" she squealed unhappy.

"Try to smile while you are at it." he joked.

Caroline pushed her flawless golden hair behind her shoulder and started cross reading what he left for her, Klaus stopped before a red light and momentarily looked at her, Caroline was invested in her reading, her thick black eyelashes weren't even blinking, he caught a glimpse of all the discrete makeup she was wearing and how it all clashed perfectly against the really bright red lipstick, the white dress with a simple pattern worked magically against her ivory skin and only her neck was free along with her shoulders which gave her a truly sophisticated appearance.

Caroline raised her head when the car behind them made its presence noticed. "It's green Klaus."

He shook his head and resumed to keep his eyes on the road, why was he was so surprised the dress fitted her so well?  
He was the one who chose it so of course that it looked magnificent on her.

* * *

"… the _Petite_, is her most notorious work and it's a metaphor to the world because Jackie decided to make a bronze sculpture of her size in the shape of a decaying figure." Caroline delivered an impressive summary of what she just learned during their ride.

Klaus parked his car with a nod. "Don't deviate from that and if you don't understand a question just pretend you didn't listen because of the screaming crowd and move on to the next reporter."

Caroline held back a big chuckle, he actually seemed convinced there would be people wanting to talk to her or even a screaming… wait.

As soon as she stepped outside she could hear the big commotion on the other side of the street and she jolted at him stunned. "What is that?"

"They seem to be gathering quite in a number." Klaus said excited and reaching for his phone. "We just need to wait for your godmother to arrive." he said almost with too much glee over his own plan.

Suddenly everything became very real and present for Caroline, he was forging a big entrance for her and she became aware this was really happening for her. "I'm not sleeping with you." she gushed out bravely.

Klaus left the screen of his Smartphone to look at her. "All right…. I will try to battle my impending depression over the news."

"I'm serious Klaus, if you are doing all of this expecting to have sex with me as a thank you, it's not going to happen. I may have a very naive background but I was brought up with morals that I strongly believe in and selling myself in exchange for my dream is not a choice for me." she roughly recognized pride in his smile but she wasn't ready to bet on it.

He closed his black suit before speaking, perhaps he was gathering all the things he wanted to tell her, she couldn't really know.

"I've made a name for myself by building successful careers for others and I have never involved myself either physically or romantically with any of my clients."

Caroline nodded understand him. "I won't be an exception." she still felt the need to affirm.

"You will not be one." he also cleared that for her. "I saw something when I found you doing covers on that shady Pub and I had no clue of who you were at the time yet I felt compelled to know more about you and I wouldn't be wasting my expensive time if I didn't believe others will have the same desire I did."

She smiled enchanted, it was hard staying indifferent to him when he spoke like that, when he reminded her so much of the night they first met.  
The small speech about wanting to know her dreams and aspirations in life, the easy way he conducted their conversation that revolved entirely around her had left her suspicious at the time that he was only after a one night stand and she had laughed in his face shamelessly mocking him because of the _I'm a famous manager _line, at the time she felt compelled to slap him across the face but then she did her research and found out he was indeed who he claimed to be.

Sometimes Caroline still couldn't believe she had the courage to call the number he gave her and it was with the same guts that she decided to believe him now as well. "Good." she said with a single swing of her curled hair, she trapped her tiny clutch securely in her hand and waited for his next orders.

They were held back by the car stopping in the sidewalk, at first Caroline wasn't able to form a single decent voiced word, then she proclaimed a really high-pitched _Oh my God!  
_It was her, the woman leaving the car and walking to them was his former client and she was smiling affectionately at Klaus.

"Sweetheart, you look beautiful." he said as soon as she was within his reach and kissed her cheek.

"You haven't lost your charm Nik." she sweetly answered and like she couldn't hold back, she hugged him as tightly as she could, considering how big her pregnant belly was.

"I heard it's a boy…"

"I will not be naming him after you." The famous woman warned him strictly.

He was waiting for that and laughed warmly, then he turned to Caroline who froze in anticipation, her frenzy eyes took attention to everything, she had never been this close to anyone remotely as famous as the singer now calling her near them.

"It's hard for me to move." the woman explained.

When she reached them Caroline awkwardly bowed her head uncertain how to behave, she was standing next to frigging Adele.

"Oh, you are such a sweetheart." Adele pinched her cheeks.

Caroline nervously made this odd sound that came off as sort of a chuckle. "I admire you So much."

"I have a feeling that I will be repeating those words myself soon." Adele nudged Klaus with her elbow. "If you are being led by this one, you are set for nothing less but greatness."

Caroline flicked her stare between them but decided on the woman lastly. "I should trust you…"

"No darling, you need to trust Nik, he knows what he is doing. I reckon that he remains insufferable most of the time but he has his good days." she winked at Caroline. "You need to tell him to sod off when he gets on your nerves too much, it's what I did when he tried to stop me from wearing my beloved fake eyelashes."

Klaus' throat produced a loud growl that only made the girls laugh, Caroline felt more at ease now and thoroughly enjoyed the blunt teasing happening between Adele and Klaus.

"Don't be crossed with me, you know I'm forever grateful that you introduced me to the bloke who gave me this." Adele lovingly placed her hands on her belly.

"Aren't you running late love?" Klaus shifted attentions off him at once.

Caroline smiled watching them silently, he forgot to add that earlier, Klaus also never got emotionally involved with any of his clients, even now with Adele who had been with him for so long, there was this invisible line that separated Klaus from being truly attached to anyone and Caroline's smile became sadder, it was so clear to her that he was a lonely creature by choice and she found that infinitely heartrending.

With another kiss Adele bid farewell to Klaus and took Caroline's arm as support, although the young blonde was shaking she still followed the star ready for her debut.  
Klaus stayed behind as the women crossed the street towards the small venue and the crowd really went wild when they recognized Adele.

True to herself, the English star kept Caroline under her motherly wing and took all the pictures with her, she made sure to mention her name in every quick interview she gave and to mention how Caroline Forbes was the next name to lookout for.

* * *

Her feet were killing her, the straps were horribly tight around her puffy feet and she was taking them off about the same time she was pushing the card key that gave access to her room, she jumped with a startle before crossing the threshold.

The lights were on and Klaus was waiting for her seated on the arm of the couch. "Hello sweetheart."

"Klaus…" she squinted looking at her key.

"You are in the right room." he comforted her.

She closed the door slightly unsure how to react to his presence. "You disappeared… the exhibit was actually interesting and everyone was really nice but I expect you to be there." Caroline left her stilettos on the ground and the small clutch on the little table nearby.

"I work in the backstage love, that's my circus while the spotlight is left for you." Delectably he turned his phone to her. "That's a good picture of you by the way."

Caroline gasped and ran to him, she yanked the phone from his hand and stared at it in disbelief, her face was all over twitter, she was tagged in every picture of Adele's. "Klaus!" she yelped. "Someone mentions me, they called me Carol but that's so not important, someone mentioned me as the adorable friend of Adele's."

"Is that so? Are you perchance admitting in a very clumsy way that I actually know how to do my job?"

Caroline guided her blue lively eyes to him. "When you aren't being an authority tyrant, you are actually bearable."

"Adele was visibly impressed by you, she said that you captivated everyone in the room and that you were very polite and lovely, I almost called her a liar."

"For your information, I was Miss everything back in my town..."

"I know." he smugly interrupted her.

"Therefore I know how to act like a lady." Caroline rolled her eyes ignoring him and stared at her pictures for a little longer. "I'm very photogenic and now I'm famous on the internet…"

"Easy on the ego love, for now you are only a small little fish thrown into the ocean, we need to make you bigger so that the big sharks step aside for you." he rescued his phone back. "Also, you are only truly famous when someone actually gets your name right."

She sulked instantly but her stomach claimed all the attentions, she pressed her hands against it trying to stop the noises that were growing by the minute, she had been anxious all day and avoiding food, now she was hungry as hell.

"Adele mentioned something about your dislike for Sushi…" Klaus lowered his chin so he could engage her eyes.

Caroline spoke through her mopping. "They served raw fish…" she shivered just buy remembering it. "I'm a meat girl…"

"You know love…" he reached behind him to the couch and took a silver platter that was holding something covered by a domed lit. "All in all, you did really well today."

"Am I now a dog that gets cookies for good behavior?" she scoffed promptly.

"Very well, I'll indulge in it myself then." he exposed a luscious burger and fries.

Caroline screamed leaping at Klaus and having a bite while he was still holding the only hamburger she had seen in weeks, she made the most satisfied sounds and took a handful of French fries to go with it. "Oh my God…." she covered her mouth while Klaus only laughed entertained with her actions. "I think I'm having an orgasm…" she sighed with a few fries on the way to her mouth. "If I could still remember how that feels like." she brutally looked at him. "I can't even have a boyfriend with all this tight to-do list that you have going on for me."

"Soon there will be groupies sweetheart and I might not interfere with those."

"I'm allowed to have sex?" she asked with her mouth full.

"As long as I'm allowed to be inside the room to make sure there aren't any sex tapes being recorded."

Caroline stopped munching and loudly gulped down, they stared at each other for the longest time until she tightened her lips together and punched him hard on the arm. "You are not witty, at all!"

"I beg to differ." he stood up placing his hands inside of his suit pants. "After you are done with your little food porn try to get some rest Caroline." he advised her as he was about to reach the door.

"Thanks for this Klaus… it meant a lot to see that there are actual feelings living among those big muscles of yours." she giggled joyfully.

"It was a doggy treat because you need to be up at 4am to start working on your single, Bono is going to visit another Pope so we have an opening at the Studio."

"That's three hours from now." Caroline muttered with dismay.

"I would take the chance to sleep love, the sofa seems very comfortable." There was an effortless sneer from him.

"Sod off, _Satan._" she shouted before he closed the door.

* * *

**Soundtrack:**

Lay me down - _Avicii_

It's a beautiful day - _U2_

The new black - _Moon Taxi_

Morning sun - _The Happy Mess_


	2. Rewind

Marcel turned his chair with a big grin and he contemplated the other man waiting for a reaction.

"You weren't lying, that's a fact." The man called Enzo shifted his weight on his chair and leaned forward to bring up the volume, the beautiful voice coming from inside the booth was undeniably very good. "And that's a clean voice, you say?" he still had his strong doubts about that.

Marcel lifted his hands, all the buttons in front of him were untouched, he wasn't tampering at all with her natural voice.

"And she's gorgeous to go along with it." Enzo narrowed his view around her chest. "Is Klaus tapping that?" he smirked with devious.

"Klaus will redo your face if he hears you talking like that, you know how protective he is of his assets." Marcel gathered his focus back to the blonde.

Enzo gave him a sly look. "Well that's one of his best assets so far."

Marcel gave up with a shake of his head, he knew Enzo used the lower part of his brain recurrently forgetting when to stop. "Try to give it a rest." he still asked as he was about to call Caroline out of the booth.

Enzo parted his hands conveying an innocence that just didn't live in him at all.

"How is my voice today?" Caroline asked apprehensive as soon as she joined them, she was jittery today and it took her a while to calm her nerves which really showed in her voice, she was certain of it and expected Marcel to complain.

Instead the big guy pulled a chair for her with a smile. "We need to talk about songs. So far, you've been doing some neat versions but we need an original to launch you."

Caroline jolted with a spur of life and left the chair without warming it, she grabbed her bag and searched frantically for something. "I have a few… Damn!" she cursed when the old notebook fell from her hand.

Enzo smirked as he lustful tilted his head admiring Caroline's ass while she picked up the notebook.

She caught him checking her out which left her uncomfortable but she tried to ignore it as forcefully as she was able to. "I wrote a few songs." Caroline handed the notebook to Marcel. "The first ones aren't my best but I got really good towards the middle and then later o…" she interrupted her easy flow because Marcel skimmed too quickly through the pages, she knew he wasn't even listening, let alone reading her earnest lyrics.

Marcel dropped the notebook hastily on top of the mixing table. "They seem sweet but we need something professional." His very tone was dismissing and straight to the point. "We have a few originals waiting to be picked up and Enzo here agreed to help us choose one for your big debut."

Caroline tried her best to be polite. "What does Klaus think about this?"

Marcel laughed with a big noise. "Klaus wants the money coming in, he has a big property in England that costs a lot to maintain and that only comes with the big hits that we will produce for you."

They hadn't specifically talked about the direction she wanted to take with her album but while listening to the sample of the pre-recorded song Caroline realized what she _didn't _want.  
At first she was happy that Enzo rejected the song, he found it too cheeky and she was relieved that they weren't forcing her to sing about her body like she was advertising herself as a booty call but that glee didn't last for long because the two men were suddenly incredibly excited over some confusing lyrics about a wild night in the woods.

The amount of times that the word _moon _was repeated in the chorus made her cringe in nausea and it was harder than ever to smile at Marcel and Enzo when they looked for a reaction. "It's… catchy." she awkwardly rested her hands over her knees and shrugged.

Marcel tuned out the scratchy voice and left the heavy bass pounding inside the studio. "Try to sing the chorus."

Caroline unwillingly took the paper Enzo handed her, she sighed, it's not like she needed much to memorize it.  
The song consisted of two versus that were repeated after the chorus while that one consisted of the same word repeated at least ten times, the way it said _use falsetto _on the last line of the chorus was hilarious to her.

Marcel started swinging his head back and forth like he was nodding along with the song and he messed around with a few buttons to rearrange the melody, undeniably it sounded cooler after a few minutes and Caroline wished he would let her do that with the lyrics as well.

"Let's do it from the start now Caroline." Marcel asked deeply focused on the mixing table in front of him.

If Caroline came across this song in the radio, she would have changed stations within a blink but alas, she was a perfectionist with a tendency to be an overachiever and she did not disappoint.

She delivered a perfect rendition of it which left Enzo and Marcel keyed up but there was only so much one could ask of her and she abruptly cut the last chorus short. "Are you sure Klaus is ok with this?" she asked fairly sure he hadn't been paying for private singing lessons if he wasn't aiming a little higher than the easy summer song that would flop along with her career.

Marcel accused the slight irritation as he hastily replaced the ongoing beat with a rough first recording of Caroline's voice.

She went over her shock when he started using auto-tune to _correct _her voice. "What do you think that you are doing?" she asked more ticked off than surprised.

"It needs work." he stressed the obvious lack of quality in the recording, at least in his eyes. "But before we take you back inside that recording room we need to choose the right track, it doesn't hurt if we help you a little before that."

"Excuse _you_." Caroline wanted to snarl at the them. "I don't need that fancy machine tampering with my voice, I know that I'm not that awesome today but I can try it again until I have it perfect."

"Don't be so offended princess..." Enzo circled his eyes taken aback. "No one will ever find out about it."

Caroline pulled her eyebrows together in a discontent move. "We should wait for Klaus, he is my manager and I think he would like to be here when we are making big decisions about my future."

Marcel exchanged a look with Enzo.

The other bent over in his chair and got closer to Caroline. "We know that you can sing gorgeous but people enjoy hearing a certain type of perfection that is only possible after some work. We know what we are doing and we need to do it fast because every minute inside that booth costs more than you can imagine so you are not going back inside until we have the right beat for you. Klaus trusts us to make the right decisions or he would be here breathing down on our necks."

Caroline wrinkled her lips unsure, Klaus was having breakfast with someone from a big label, that's why he wasn't here or else he would be breathing down so hard on their necks that it would feel like he was sniffing them.  
They were very despair but one thing Caroline and Klaus shared, they were incredibly ambitious and they were control freaks to no extend.

But perhaps she was the one with the sharpest tongue. "You can't tell how good I am with that poor recording, my phone records better than that and mind you that it's as old as I am." she stretched her lips to form a smile.

Enzo twitched in his seat with the sassy comeback but the apt reaction was reeled upon Klaus' arrival.

"Hello…" Klaus stood by the door astute as he was. Obviously the mood was tense inside the room.

"Solve us a riddle Klaus…" Marcel replayed the short auto-tuned recording for the manager.

Klaus wheeled his eyes to Caroline, she crossed her arms expecting him to do something brutal about the dreadful offense.

"Should we add a rapper to the chorus or just leave Caroline's voice fading at the end of it?" Marcel easily asked Klaus expecting nothing else but a genuine answer.

Caroline narrowed her eyes with growing spite for the farce while it took Klaus a good few seconds to recognize Caroline's original voice at all.

"This isn't the single you showed me last week." Klaus was also stuck on something more vital to him.

"I had an artist to promote and Marcel gave me the single." Enzo smirked at Klaus. "Do you want to know her name?" he said with smugness for the first successful managing gig he landed.

"Why are you here?" Klaus asked at the same time he slowly looked at Enzo.

The disdain for the other man left Caroline wound up and irrationally she wished for Klaus' fist to end on Enzo's nose.

"I have money to be here and I paid Marcel for the single." he was terribly sly as he smiled again. "It's number one already on iTunes Klaus, you really need to keep up with the modern age, old man."

Marcel stood up like he was envisioning a bad outcome and a few exchanged punches. "I needed the money Klaus but look, I have a long list of possibilities, we just need to find her the right hit."

"Evidently it's not the dimwit version of Teen Wolf." Klaus snapped.

"Thank you!" Caroline dropped from her seat.

Marcel gave Klaus a look and then went past him to Caroline. "Do you mind fetching coffee for us Caroline?"

"I'm not your dog." Caroline quickly shot back.

Klaus' next trade of looks with Marcel was telling and he licked his lips before looking back at Caroline. "Give us a minute Caroline."

All the air was held back on her side and she was absolutely stunned with him but he was imperial in his stare and she clearly understood this wasn't open for discussion, with a dragged yet snappy take, she left the room restraining from slamming the door.

Once they were alone Klaus fulminated Marcel. "I chose you Marcel because you had rights over that particular song that I wanted."

"I thought that it was because we were friends." Marcel tried to bring Klaus around with a sympathetic smile.

"I hardly allow that to cloud my judgment, we had an agreement and friendship is a very loose term between us when you won't grant me the same choices you expect of me."

The handsome black man felt unease for his move. "We've been friends for so long Niklaus, I know that you are pissed but I'm not exactly sitting on my family's fortune."

Klaus gritted his teeth.

Marcel casually sat against the mixing table, he really looked for a good way to get out of this one. "I like the girl Klaus, she's drop dead hot and she's got a great smile but let's face it… she's no Adele. We can' take the independent path with this one."

"My singer is also a social media rising star by the way." Enzo unfortunately felt the will to make things worse.

Enzo was a smart ass that saw himself as the best thing that ever came from Britain and he had the nagging ability of easily getting on Klaus' bad side. "Stop talking." Klaus warned him with a hand that lifted enough to bring fear.

"This is between Klaus and I." Marcel quietly asked Enzo to go for coffee as well.

The other wasn't interested in engaging in a physical fight with Klaus so he chose to leave, on his way out he found Caroline pacing in the hallway.

He left the door open on purpose and approached her with a shady attitude. "Your future is being decided now, they will fondle a little around each other but then they will agree that a pretty face like yours is ideal for the new market. The problem is that Klaus still refuses to embrace the new rules, music is changing and the way people listen to it also changed." Enzo pulled a card from his jacket and handed it to Caroline. "If you ever get tired of Grandpa and decide to have a real manager, give me a call."

Caroline looked down on the card before taking it. "I'll remember that." she viciously crumbled his card and dropped it on the ground.

"Not a fan?" Enzo asked with a shrug.

"I don't like a man who is incapable of having a conversation without lowering his eyes to my breasts every two seconds."

Enzo chuckled sleazy as she just described him accurately and walked away.

Caroline moved her neck from side to side repulsed but came near the door, her mood wasn't improved by no means as she caught a fraction of the ongoing conversation.

_"… you are being unreasonable Klaus, the girl has talent but she's not the next Grammy winner."_

Caroline hated the small disdain that Marcel added at the end of that, it wasn't fair to mock her limitations on top of his cutting words.

* * *

"I came to you first Marcel because I wanted to give you the chance to be part of her success, if you did not trust my knowledge then you should have been upfront with me." Klaus raised his voice mad.

Marcel shook his head. "You are not seeing the big picture Klaus and I know how stubborn you can be but for Christ sake, she's just a random unknown girl like the thousands filling Los Angeles. I can find ten like her just across the street in the old diner and they all have one of these…" Marcel picked Caroline's notebook. "Pages filled with childish ramblings and simple words that they call love songs."

Klaus frowned, he wasn't familiar with the notebook and he took it from Marcel's hand surprised he missed it, he skimmed quickly through it and barely heard what Marcel was rambling about now. "You are talking Marcel but all I can hear is the wind of your turncoat."

"Stop being so dramatic Klaus, I will work with her and we will make an outstanding record but she needs to be put out there showing a lot of that stunning ivory skin of hers and doing what all the others are doing. She needs a fast hit so that she rides on that buzz as hard as she can, forget about the homemade lyrics and let me find her a real song, then get her a raunchy video with very few clothes involved and a lot of sexy moves, if it's a little on the edgy side, even better."

Klaus folded the notebook in two and kept it in his jacket pocket. "I'm not using her body to sell her debut album."

"Enzo was right…" Marcel went back to his chair. "You need to welcome the new era Klaus, every new hit girl has a provocative video and the image to go with it. I love you man but I have bills to pay and she's not going to make it big if you don't listen to the _King_."

"I'm afraid you will need another blonde to sing alongside Bulldog, Caroline will be busy working with another producer." Klaus stormed away irritated.

Marcel wrinkled his eyelids trying to figure the mistake out, he came to his senses just as Klaus was about to slam the door on him. "It's Pitbull!" Marcel shouted.

* * *

Caroline had stepped away from the door a while ago and was now sitting on the hallway waiting for Klaus, she slowly stood when he came marching towards her.  
For an instant Caroline forgot why she was down, he could be an idiot to her most of the time but the image of Klaus' muscles tense and defined under his Henley was a sight able to make anyone brighten up.

"Do I go back inside and sing about the woods again?" she asked retrieving her eyes away from his chest and encountering two immense blue pearls looking at her.

"Do you wish to be taken serious or will you settle for being just another card in the deck?" he stopped inches away from her face.

Caroline held her stare. "Only if I'm the best card of that deck."

His lips formed this magnificent smile that exposed a set of dimples. "I will get you another producer."

* * *

Caroline expectantly looked at him from the rim of the couch, she was holding her breath with every nod he made, for the last hour Klaus had made so many calls that she was struck, her stomach was hurting and she was so anxious that she hadn't touched dinner.  
All of it was still scattered over the coffee table in his suite, he hadn't eaten anything either and from the way he was hastily ending the latest call, there were no good news in the horizon.

"Nothing?" she quietly asked him.

Klaus glanced at her. "The same as the others."

Caroline motioned her lips with a huff, she turned away from him and looked down on her bare feet, she outlined the little tattoo she had on her foot thoughtful. "They have a big list of artists to check and you should bring them the single we were meant to record with _the_ producer of the moment on our side, that would be the only thing that would move us along the big waiting list."

She huffed again, Marcel was the perfect name to have on the introduction letter, she didn't know much about managing but she learned from watching Klaus that the big companies were currently flooded with many new names.  
From all the popular girls leaving the reality shows to the new emerging stars on Youtube, the industry was full and like Marcel predicted, saturated with the new wave of naughty pop stars that reigned the charts.

"There's still time to call Marcel you know… we just left the studio a couple of hours ago and he is your friend…" she said trying to adjust to the real consequence of her words.

Klaus sat next to Caroline. "I'm sure you look divine with no clothes on Caroline but unless that's what you want to do publicly, I won't place you in that situation."

She sweetly began to smile. "What will we do then?"

"Find a solution." he assured her before standing up again.

She went back to rest her arms on the back of the couch while watching him, she toyed with a lock of her hair, twirling it around her finger lazily and for the longest time she just sat there watching him work.  
He was charming and playful on the phone, although she knew he wasn't sincere in all the comments, she was sure they made all the ladies melt and Caroline waited for a positive answer very soon.

The only obstacle now was her body asking her to pee and she jumped from the couch with a little run to the bathroom, she wasn't long in there but when she was ready to leave Klaus was already engaged in another call and she halted before coming out of the bathroom.  
For the second time today she eavesdropped on a conversation that involved Klaus but this time around the subject was money.

_"… I know that I'm way over my budget but I do know what I'm doing."_

He didn't mention any names but it was clear that he was talking to someone important in his life and Caroline tried to be as quiet as she could while she cracked the door open a little more.

Klaus was rubbing the back of his neck showing the distress but also how tired he was after the strenuous day. _"I need another week."_ Klaus was imperative now.

Caroline could tell the answer didn't sit well with the other side because Klaus dropped a hand in front of him like he was ordering the other person to shut up.

_"I will not have this conversation now and I will not return until I have her career on its way, you know that I will not rest until I have that accomplished so why are you demanding something that I am utterly unqualified to deliver?"_

His tone hardened and Caroline hid again completely inside the bathroom.

There was a dry laugh from Klaus next. _"If that is the case, I will use my own money to finance her breakthrough."_

Caroline closed the door unwilling to listen to the rest, the angry pitch was a sign that he was having a fight with someone over her and Caroline felt bad.  
He already spent a lot of money on her, he paid for everything since they arrived to LA and now she just found out he surpassed his budget and was going to invest his own money.

No…  
Caroline pressed her tummy, enough was enough.

From Marcel's words, she found out that she wasn't even that good and worthy of all this, Klaus shouldn't be going to such lengths to make her dream come true and it wasn't fair that he was fighting with someone else over it as well.  
Determined she left the bathroom ready to tell him just that, she waited until he ended the call and then apologized for eavesdropping.

"I'm sorry but I heard the call when I was leaving and I feel bad Klaus. I'm really lucky that you have such belief in my talent but Marcel was right, I'm just a small town girl with a lot of willpower but I lack the _it _factor and although I've loved everything you showed me… it's time to pull the plug."

"I've lost you around the feeling bad part." he attempted a smile but she knew he was forcing it.

"Thank you for believing in me when no one else bothered to have a second look but I can't keep living on your expenses when your boss is cornering you to drop me."

Klaus shook his head slightly and closed his eyes weary from the call. "It's someone slightly more complicated than an employer."

Caroline had no intention of asking who it was because it was not her place to ask such questions, she just wanted to end it all in a good note. "This was unforgettable Klaus and I will treasure all the things I've learned. The Yoga will stay with me forever." she pressed her chest hard.

Klaus laughed finally letting his phone go for today. "Sweetheart…"

She interrupted him easily with a shake of her bouncy curls. "I'm going to pack, you can cancel my suite after tonight. As for the one-way ticket back home, I still have a few savings and I know you are going to argue with me but I would like to pay you back someday for all of this. I'm sure my job at the local Pub is still waiting for me." she cutely laughed.

It was astounding to him how she took the end of her dream so stoically but she was right, the issues were mounting and the fact he lost his temper just now when confronted about it was a bad sign. Klaus never crossed any lines or got attached in any way so he took back the strange hint of emotion in the air and smiled neutrally at her. "I'm truly disheartened that we haven't accomplished this."

Caroline moved her head so she could give him a side look. "I met Adele and I took a picture with her that was all over the internet."

He laughed quietly lowering his head. "Yes, I made _Carol _famous for a night."

Caroline picked up her shoes and was all steamy in her innuendo. "I'm sure many _Carols_ felt the same after a night with Klaus Mikaelson."

He had one last laugh before she left to her room then he sat on the couch picking up his tablet but he couldn't find anything capable of holding his attention for long so after a few minutes he decided to grab his jacket and go down to the front desk.

"Good evening Mr. Mikaelson, may I help you?" One of the girls working on the night shift greeted him with a big smile.

"Yes, I'd like to check out from both suites after tonight." he took the wallet from his pocket.

"I'll prepare everything for you." The girl started a few mandatory steps before handing him the invoice and all the papers required for the cancellation of his stay.

After confirmation Klaus paid the bill with his credit card and then thanked her for the discrete and efficient work with a big tip.

"You need to leave the suites before 10 Am tomorrow." she reminded him. "And I hope you will be staying with us again." she politely added.

Klaus merely responded with a bow and headed for the hotel bar, he could use a good Irish whiskey and that's exactly what he asked for.  
It was late, the usual crowd was reduced to a few men who couldn't stand anymore and a couple trying to have sex with their hands instead of taking it upstairs.

Klaus was thoroughly enjoying his drink setting himself apart from the surroundings, his only reaction to what was happening around him was when a phone started ringing and he searched the pockets of his jacket wondering if it was his phone.  
Soon he realized he left it upstairs but he did find the notebook, which he had forgotten entirely.

Klaus asked for a drink refill before opening the pad, now that he could actually read attentively what she wrote, Klaus immersed himself in a series of words imprinted with passion.  
They resembled a diary taking in consideration how she started talking about pain and love so deeply entwined that he became certain she didn't know them apart.

Time flew as he read all of her notes, some were bubbly connections and others were heartfelt gushes of scars that wouldn't heal but reading them all was like accessing Caroline's soul.  
The pages were ending and Klaus felt compelled to read everything only that he was drawn to a specific passage, he kept reading these words over and over until he shot from his stool and went up to the suites.

He hit Caroline's door repeatedly with his fist until she opened the door with a glare.

"Klaus…" she hissed with fury.

Klaus fought a big chuckle, Caroline's hair was a mess of curls and she had something orange sticking to that maze. "Did you fall asleep eating chips again love?"

Caroline's sleepy eyes went wide. "What…" her hand flew to her hair and she struggled to look decent in front of him, after a few hair brushes and a straightening of the over-sized T-shirt that she was using as a night wear she snapped at him again. "What do you want Klaus? It's really late."

Klaus stretched his arms to each side and placed his hands on her threshold. "Were you in an abusive relationship?"

Caroline grasped for air confounded. "Are you aware of how invasive and inconvenient that just was?"

Klaus refuted her words and just blatantly pushed himself inside of her room.

She turned around perplexed. "Are you drunk?"

"Two drinks are hardly able to knock me off sweetheart."

"How about a punch straight in the face?" she asked closing her door.

Klaus brought forward the notebook. "_Your twisted words… convince me to please you, made me think that I need this too…"  
_  
Caroline loudly inhaled and flung herself at him. "Why are you reading that? How did you get your hands on that?"

Klaus pushed her away with a hand while the other further took the pad away from her reach. "You also wrote… _I'm trying to let you hear me as I am._"

Caroline responded to his soft voice with a yielding of her body. "So what? You had no right to read that without my permission."

"I'm not trespassing your privacy Caroline, you forgot this back at the studio and these notes you've scribbled in here are an honest rendition of your life."

"Is that a question or a statement?" Caroline's hands disappeared under the long sleeves.

"Are you willing to show the world who you are? To let them hear you as you truly are?"

Caroline threw her hands in the air. "I don't know who I am, that's just a bunch of stuff I wrote back at home and I thought that maybe… we could use them but I was put back into my place today." she sadly said.

Klaus handed her the notes back. "I just find you genuine and malice-free and I know how much the world will fall in love with someone like you. You are relatable Caroline and I've found that since the day I've met you."

"Ugh!" Caroline covered her eyes. "Don't do that." she faced him angry. "Don't get my hopes all up again."

"You are destined for greater things sweetheart, the small town pub is irrevocably not an option for your talent."

Caroline hugged the side of her waist. "You should see the doctor, there's a bipolar thing going on with your brain."

"Pack your belongings." Klaus hectically headed for the door.

"My two dresses and my teddy bear have been packed for hours Klaus." she tilted her head finding him insane by the second.

"We are leaving in ten minutes."

When Caroline opened her mouth to speak he was long gone, she circled her hand in the air before giving up with a flick. "Seriously…"

* * *

"That is yours?" Caroline shrieked loudly, she pointed energetically at the small jet plane. "_That_ belongs to you?"

"It belongs to my family." Klaus clarified without stopping his walk.

There was a girl waiting for them inside the jet and she took Caroline's small bag with a smile, the blonde neared the big seats with wobbly legs, Klaus was already on his phone and sitting down with a glass of Scotch in his hand.  
Caroline took the seat across his with an overwhelmed sensation.

"Can I get you something do drink?" the girl with a black skirt and a yellow shirt asked Caroline.

"Sparkling water?" Caroline ventured sweetly.

"I'll bring it right away." The girl answered leaving Caroline and Klaus alone once she delivered the requested bottle.

Caroline leaned back on the puffed chair, she felt herself sink into it as the extremely comfortable seat absorbed her light weight.  
Klaus looked up to find Caroline bouncing on her seat like a little girl.

She giggled happily entertained. "These are really comfy… I bet they've seen a lot of Mile High Club action."

Klaus did a poor job restraining his smirk. "There has been the occasional girlfriend."

She pushed her seat back until she was in semi-lying position, it wasn't a bad view and she wondered if it would be too straightforward to ask him if he had a girlfriend at the moment.  
There wasn't much she knew about Klaus' private life, just that he came from a very ancient English family and that he had a lot of siblings, Caroline was almost sure she read somewhere he had five of them.

She decided to stay quiet about it and looked for her phone, it barely worked without a few good bangs against her leg and there wasn't even a decent game in it.  
Caroline was hoping to ask his iPad borrowed so she could distract herself but Klaus was busy with it and she backed away, since she was stuck with nothing to do Caroline snuggled on her chair and looked out her window.

They were crossing a sea of clouds and she randomly lost herself in thoughts and dreams that were interrupted when Klaus grumbled some swearing under his breath.

"What's eating you?" she asked him with a frown.

As he pushed the volume button repeatedly some song echoed louder, the song was pretty but the voice singing it couldn't belong to someone older than 16 and Caroline didn't recognize the voice at all.

"That's Enzo's star, Davina. She's a teen singing a masterpiece. It sounds like she's cleaning her doll house while doing it."

The snarky observation made Caroline laugh. "It's still a good song."

"You should be the one singing it." he dropped the tablet on his lap upset.

"If I didn't connect to it, I would also sound like her." Caroline guaranteed.

Klaus knew she was right but he still felt sour over Marcel's betrayal. "We just need the right song."

Caroline felt the ultimatum in his voice, she didn't require a full download of his thoughts to know this was her last chance to make it. "Where are we going Klaus?"

"To see someone who hopefully will be able to help us without crossing me." he leaned back on his chair and finally seemed to relax.

It took him a couple of minutes to fall asleep but Caroline knew how much he needed that precious rest and she didn't make a sound unwilling to bother him, although she went back admiring the clouds her blue eyes often searched for the handsome man peacefully resting.

* * *

"I can't believe we are in New York..." her voice came out muffled because she had her face glued to the glass of the elevator.

She was still recovering from the shock once they stepped down from the jet, now she was going up to the top floor of a luxurious residential skyscraper and she was in awe of the view over Manhattan.  
She was actually here, in the city of dreams and she pulled away from the glass dizzy from the incredible height they were gaining and from the chain of events that led her here.

"My sister and her husband live in here…" Klaus explained a bit in awe himself for the girl genuinely happy to be here.

Caroline cocked an eyebrow amused. "And here I was thinking that you were going to show me your red room next."

Klaus' laughter filled the elevator. "I enjoy touching as much as I enjoy being touched sweetheart and I rather not be in full control all the time. I find the book insipid to be quite frank but I didn't know it was on your reading resumé."

"I simply read it to know what the big fuss was about." she joined her shoulders. "But it's not my thing."

"May I risk a slap in my face by asking what is your _thing_?"

Caroline wished she hadn't looked at his neck, the necklaces were her weak point, she just loved a man with good taste and Klaus was a master spewing that.  
From the real cool leather jackets, to the gasmic Henley's, to the on point choice of necklaces.

"You are making me nervous." she uncomfortably shifted her weight and crossed an arm around her chest, shielding herself from him.

"Do I remind you of him?" Klaus bluntly asked.

Caroline took a double look towards him, like she was at first doubting she heard right. "Don't be a prick now that I started seeing you as an actual human being."

"It was just a misfortune question." he said without facing away from her.

It wasn't exactly doing wonders to her racing heart and she had no control over her response, when the doors of the elevator opened up she didn't move and Klaus lost the easy attire as well.  
There would be a _sw__eetheart _coming really soon but Caroline acted on a spur of bravery.

"He wasn't my boyfriend and it wasn't a long-term relationship. He was a one night stand that was meant to be fun, I didn't think I would end up in the hospital when I refused to have sex the way he wanted."

He watched silently as she painfully dragged air inside to fill her chest.

"But don't worry, you don't look like him." she clarified heading for the exit quickly.

She should have foreseen it but Klaus still was faster than her and grabbed her arms as she was about to go by him, it was the closest they had ever stood to each other and touching as it was.  
Caroline lowered her eyes spotting for the first time the mole on his neck and when she looked up she found him outlining her face with his eyes.

"Caroline..." he simply said, the words_ I'm sorry_ weren't available in his vocabulary.

She dismissed it with another shrug. "It's not important."

Klaus clenched his lips upset and the throaty sound was a loud verbalization of it.

"There's a vein about to explode in your neck." she cutely smiled at him.

He really didn't want to smile but she made it impossible to keep a straight face, although he still tried to be serious when he spoke. "I'm your manager Caroline therefore you are the most important person in my life right now."

She tensed upon the proximity. "It's sort of unfair to say it like that using your thick accent."

"Although you are a very beautiful woman Caroline, I did not mean it in a romantic connotation."

"Damn..." she mockingly faked a troubled curse.

It eased the moment and they broke away from each other with a smile.

"But you need to know that your comfort and safety are my main concern as your handler." he insisted.

"Bad analogy Klaus." she grunted taking the lead out of the elevator.

As they went down the hallway she felt a strange unexplained excitement and she had a hard time controlling her fangirl mode when Stefan Salvatore opened the door for them.

"Are you going bald or is that just some really crappy haircut?" the blonde man asked with a malicious smile.

"It's wonderful to see your hair again as well Stefan." Klaus countered with a sneer.

Stefan crumbled into laughter and locked his hand with Klaus, then both men shared this big manly hug full on hands pressing shoulder plates and odd noises that only guys were able to pull off when they encountered someone vital in their lives.

"This is Caroline Forbes." Klaus introduced her once he was free from Stefan's affection.

She barely lifted her hand. "Hi… big renown song writer and famous person…"

Stefan was immediately enchanted. "I'm not famous, at least I don't think I am."

Klaus cleared his throat. "Fake modesty is not your fortitude."

Stefan rolled his eyes at Klaus inviting Caroline first inside his house.

Caroline took it all in with curiosity, the apartment was huge and right off the bat she could see a big black piano from the lobby. "You worked with Bon Jovi." she said a bit awestruck now that she recalled all the people he worked with. "And Aerosmith."

"I was down with the old guard." Stefan playfully said.

"Is my sister around?" Klaus asked with a glance around the house.

"Bekah is in Australia, she's shooting some movie about vampires so we have the house all for ourselves." Stefan answered.

"She left you uncared for?" Klaus teased Stefan.

The other gave him a foul look before sitting at the piano. "She will be back next week and you know Nik... there is this new invention that makes dreams come true, it's called Skype."

Klaus made this grumpy sound, he was a man of real touch and he would never fall for this new hype.  
The easy banter followed and Caroline watched it all from a distance, she wasn't used to seeing Klaus so relaxed and playful and it took her a bit to motion when Stefan called her near them.

"So Nik tells me that you have a few songs in the makings…"

Caroline started shaking. "It's a… rubbish." she stammered out.

No way was she placing her _work _at the same level than an ode like _I don't want to miss a thing_ but they simply gawked at her like they were going on air strike until she displayed her notes over the piano.  
With a deep sigh Caroline opened her bag.

"You should do it before Stefan becomes senile." Klaus grinned.

Caroline clasped her lips upset and glared at him, it was as effective as doing a rain dance but she still squinted at him.  
Klaus swiftly showed his dimples in response.

"Here…" Caroline handed the worn out pad to Stefan.

She cleaned her sweaty palms anticipating the same show that Marcel presented her with but like Klaus, Stefan found a few loose sentences that he liked and as easily as it was for Caroline to bring air to her lungs, Stefan began to stroke the keys of his piano.  
In seconds he had a repeated melody that instantly attracted Caroline and she inched closer to the piano.

"_Head under water…_" Stefan started singing, firstly trying to fit the words to the melody but quickly changing it to fit the lyrics instead. "_And they tell me…" _he started again but Caroline interrupted him by joining her voice with his, Stefan stopped singing but kept playing the piano and looked at Caroline with an encouraging smile.

"_… the breathing gets harder, even I know that." _Caroline found her courage and carried on knowing the lines blindly.

Stefan's melody melted like magic around her voice and Klaus watched it all with a winning smile, finally they had _the _weapon he needed to throw Caroline into the wolves.  
Stefan stopped to gather what they had so far and Caroline suggested they added a new line after the first one on paper, he nodded getting intricately into working mood and started the song from the start.

Caroline filled the apartment with a secure and beautiful voice as she as well found her niche.

"_Head under water, and they tell me to breathe easy for a while.  
The breathing gets harder, even I know that_.  
_You made room for me..."_

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

Keeps gettin' better - Christina Aguilera

When we come alive - _Switchfoot_

The middle - _Jimmy Eat World_

I'm a mess - _Ed Sheeran_

Love song - _Sara Bareilles_


	3. A little deeper

Caroline had one of those laughs that took over a room and by addition an entire block around it, Klaus just left the elevator and he could already hear it from the hallway.

"I do hope you have at least another song prepared by now." Klaus ended the party happening by the piano with snark.

"We've perfected _Eternal Flame_." Caroline beamed surrounded by a lot of fast food.

The sight of tacos and everything related to Mexican food left him queasy and naturally his tone expressed exactly that. "It's a rather bad decision to name a new song with an old one."

Caroline giggled. "It's not a new one, I've decided to include my favorite song in the master demo we are preparing."

Klaus chuckled but unlike the bubbly blonde, he was ticked off when he did it. "Your master demo will not include a cover."

Caroline instantly frowned. "But I want it that way."

"It's a horrendous idea." he poked all the food scattered on top of the piano. "Much like this…"

Stefan defensively opened his arms when Klaus looked at him. "She never tried Mexican before and I found it a crime."

"Wonderful of you Stefan, will you be doing all the singing from now on then? I'm sure you would look sexy in red." Klaus scolded him before picking up the bin they kept around for paper waste.

When he started cleaning the surface from all the food, Caroline managed to rescue a big bag of spicy chips that she protected against her chest. "Why are you murdering all the good food?" she asked him aghast that he was throwing it all into the bin.

"I'm trying to beat your suicidal wish to die of a heart attack before you turn 20." Klaus tossed a variety of sauces with particular disdain into the bin.

Caroline judged him with all the power that her fresh 19 years allowed her. "There's nothing wrong with my heart." she launched a hand into the bag retrieving a very greasy chip from inside. "It's _undead, _unlike yours." she mumbled.

Klaus laughed provoked by her. "I haven't heard you sing today sweetheart, would you grant me a show right now?"

"Sure." Caroline shrugged. "What do you want to hear?"

"Something vigorous and energetic." he demanded with a big smile.

Caroline grimaced succumbing to the lack of energy in her. "Can't you settle for a good ballad?"

"Only if you come up with a few good high notes to impress me." he improved his smile by adding dimples.

Caroline cleared her throat like she was cleaning her voice but the first draft was horribly out of tone and the second was even worst so she stopped half way through it and bit her lip accusing the way she just wasn't feeling any of it.

"Are you feeling lazy? Perhaps in need of a good nap because of the way you feel so full of rubbish food?" Klaus held out the bin for her.

She angrily tossed the bag of chips into it. "I only wanted to live a little."

"You are allowed to live when you have your face displayed on Times Square." Klaus dropped the bin upset.

"We only took a break of an hour." Caroline glanced to Stefan for help.

But he was already leaving the piano. "I'm sorry Caroline but it's a golden rule for a musician to never step in between a manager and his client."

When he left them alone Caroline felt unprotected but she decided that putting space between her and the fuming man all in dark blue was the best option for now.  
With a somewhat flair attitude she walked to the middle of the living room and stretched her arms, then her legs before she focused on turning her head to the sides, after a few other random movements she sat on the carpet and crossed her legs over her lap, upon resting her arms there as well she started making a continuous humming sound.

Klaus loudly inhaled. "What are you doing now Caroline?"

"I feel bloated so I'm doing Yoga to feel better." she deliberately left out the part of how incredibly distressed he made her.

Klaus needed a drink and he left her humming on the living room to arrange for that exactly.  
Caroline opened one eye catching him leaving but quickly closed it again before he caught her and only to poke him further she started chanting louder to something she just made up now.

* * *

Stefan was enjoying his drink on the balcony and he defended himself before Klaus started spewing bad remarks his way. "She has a way of convincing people without our awareness."

Klaus closed the door of the balcony peeking at her, now she was making circles with her arms. "She has the ability of toying with all my limits." he grumbled as he took the glass to his mouth.

Stefan gave his drink a rest with a squint. "You are 26 years old and you've been a manager for 25 of those years…" he easily joked before getting serious. "But I've never seen a client manage to incite you in any way."

Klaus smiled watching Caroline now doing some sort of exercise that consisted of sticking her ass in the air, she wasn't kidding when she protested about how silly Yoga was to her, whatever it was that she was doing with such a concentrated face was everything but Yoga. "She is…" Klaus relished in the easy smile. "… I don't find her predictable." When Stefan chose to keep quiet Klaus turned to him set on putting the matter to rest. "You've also known me for the better half of my life so you know that there's nothing else to it." he added.

Stefan nodded silently ending his drink.

* * *

Caroline lifted her head when the two men returned to the room.

"Are we interrupting a private moment, love?" Klaus rested his drink on the piano.

Caroline gave him a feisty look while bringing her foot to the back of her head and making a perfect arch with her leg. "I'm finding my inner balance."

"Any chance you might find your good will to work while you are at it?" Klaus opened her old pad, noticing that the pages were all full now, she had been writing nonstop since they arrived to New York.

Caroline yanked it from his hands before he got a decent shot to read it. "This is like a diary, it means that it should be kept private until I decide to share it with someone else."

"How adorable of you, should I get you a key so you can keep your hopes and dreams locked up as well?" Klaus dared her with a lift of his eyebrows.

"I want to include a cover, it's something everyone knows and they will see how different my voice is from the original." she asked him in a more pleading way.

"Covers are for family, friends and pets. Do you have a dog that you want to win over?" Klaus found his way back to the alcohol.

"Just a really grumpy wolf." she huffed.

"I'm impressed that your range of compliments would reach that far." he smirked.

Caroline delved towards his face, at first he thought she was going to slap him but with a determined move she took his glass away. "You know, this kills too." she waved his drink at him. The movement was so surprising for Klaus that he didn't have a reply and after she realized how much she just crossed a subtle line, she was alarmed for a few seconds there. "I really want to become famous before your liver disintegrates." she quickly drove the conversation back to the neutral side.

"Then I suggest that we go back to work?" Stefan interrupted the awkward staring happening in front of him, for some reason he really missed his wife all of a sudden.

"Yes!" Caroline reacted with a smile for Stefan. "We already have a good catchy song, can we also do a ballad and something more on the alternative side?" she asked hopeful.

"Are we going for a romantic, smooth demo or a diverse one?" Stefan was confused.

"We'll try to fit as much as we can into it." Caroline was assertive.

Klaus did that loud inhaling thing again which propelled her to sigh.

"What is it this time?" she tilted her head to him.

"We are trying to showcase you as one specific kind of artist, not as the resident do-it-all in the circus." Klaus itched to have his drink back.

"How will they know that I'm good if we only bring them a tiny sample of what I can do?"

"The first demo I showed of Adele had her singing one song scarcely hinting to all the amazing things her voice could do and she was hired before the end of that song." Klaus smugly reminded her of the facts behind his attitude.

"Why not put everything I can do into one good song?" Caroline looked at Stefan for support again.

"It's a recurring mistake Caroline but Nik and I know enough to stop you from doing it. A song with too many tricks pushes people away instead of making them connect to you." Stefan sweetly tried explaining it in a way she would understand. "When you think of your favorite songs, do you recall the way the singer went up on certain parts or do you remember the way you related to them instead?"

Caroline crossed her arms with a sulk. "Fine. We won't do things my way."

Obviously that was the main issue with Caroline and Klaus signaled Stefan to leave them alone with a slight motion of his head.

"I'm going to call my wife." Stefan simply said.

Although they were suppose to confront each other over this, Caroline didn't take her eyes from the old notepad and she even added a few words visibly written with anger, they occupied the very last space left on the page which made Caroline shrink her handwriting to savage that line of thought.

"Are you trying to fit your wrath into that small space? It looks rather lacking to me." Klaus tested her just as she struggled to add a dot.

"I'm buying a new one tomorrow so I can write all the ways in which I hate you." she looked at him with a forced smile.

"I look forward to read the way you will plot my demise." he licked his lips barely taming a grin.

Caroline closed her pad violently. "Well, I would if I could afford to buy a new pad." her voice dropped a little in gloom.

Klaus rested his forearms on the piano keeping a strong hold of her eyes with his. "I know that you are stronger than to give up now."

"I'm also very protective of this." she sighed padding the pad she owned for years.

"Going for the safe choice is not an option sweetheart."

Though he was very strict, Caroline sensed an unfamiliar care in his voice and she didn't look away from him as he carried on.

"A dusty cover is as good as the sampled fabrication Marcel tried to sell you." Klaus finished.

She wrinkled her nose like the memory brought a bad scent with it.

"The market is saturated with voices that sound exactly the same, you cannot tell the difference when you hear them on the radio, and not even the videos are doing that for them now because everyone does the same over and over."

His voice was alluring and somehow Caroline's eyes drifted to the lips producing such enchanting words with a delicious English accent.

"It's a cycle, that's all there is to it. Every few years the music industry becomes dull and repetitive until someone breaks through and makes everything exciting again. A voice, an image or just that one remarkable song that becomes number one in 70 countries and begins a new age…" he leaned over to her. "I want you to be the transcendent that every girl will follow and try to imitate, the other way around is simply not acceptable."

Caroline gulped down louder than she intended. "You tell that to every girl, don't you?"

He managed to make her heart speed in its steady rhythm when he smugly smiled at her. "I'm actually offering you the chance to get to know me, so that you can answer that for yourself."

It was her turn to smile with arrogance. "I'm too smart to fall for some cheap pep talk that you memorized and now sell to every pretty face that you want to put on the cover of _Rolling Stones_."

"But that's why I like you sweetheart…"

Caroline chuckled looking away from him and fighting a looming easiness between them.

"Do you want to be on that magazine or not?" he pushed her enough.

Caroline searched for his eyes with nothing but ambition. "More than anything."

In the midst of a blue smeared with green, he recognized that fire in her eyes that would take the world by storm, he was deeply convinced that Caroline was destined to be one of the biggest artists of her generation and nothing would stop him at this point from achieving that so slowly he took the pad from her hands. "Then allow others to see how magnificent you truly are in your most raw and vulnerable state. Be fragile when they need you to be that frail but be a lioness when they demand a regal leader."

This time she didn't stop him when he started reading her thoughts and she gave in quietly when Stefan returned and started using them to work on a new song, maybe Marcel was wrong after all and she would make Klaus proud in the end.

* * *

"Dinner will be ready in a few minutes." Stefan informed the man opening the rich wine.

Klaus stirred the beautiful elixir allowing the smell to hit his nose and smiled pleased with the choice. "All those long dinners suddenly come to mind."

Stefan waved an empty glass at Klaus. "You better not be here when Bekah returns, you know how jealous she is of our brotherhood."

"How is my troublesome sister?"

Stefan's smile was as big as Klaus'. "She's having a blast on set, it's an action packed movie so she insists on doing all of her stunts and she's all excited because she gets to wear fangs… so yes, she's still crazy. And I miss her like hell."

"Nothing has truly changed between you and her…" suddenly Klaus' tone plummeted to a gloomy vibe.

"Nik…" Stefan wasn't one to pry but he was one to observe everything to exhaustion. "You haven't talked to Caroline about…" he cut his remark short when Caroline entered the dining room with a lively smile.

Unaware of the ongoing conversation she dazzled them with a genuine happy vibe, they managed today to create the start of another song that was impressive in its lyrics and melody. "What are we having for dinner? I'm very hungry." she informed them in case they failed to see how eager she was to eat.

"I'm making good Southern comfort food." Stefan winked at Caroline.

During one of the big talks they had, they had surprisingly found out that they both came from very small Southern towns and that alone forged a connection that was surely the beginning of a lasting friendship.  
Inwardly Caroline prayed that he was doing Chilly but she kept it to herself, mostly because something smelled funny in the room.

She really tried being discreet but checking her flat shoes for any signs of dirt attracted Klaus' attention and he found it funny that she was attempting to smell her colorful sleeveless dress next.

"It's not you, it's the _Gorau Glas_." he said amused.

Caroline gave him an odd look. "What's that?"

Klaus picked up a plate. "It's expensive cheese."

"It's… _blue_." Caroline covered her nose from the pungent smell.

"It's exactly as it should be." Klaus knew she was about to tell him that the cheese was bad. "You should try it."

She looked at him like he was crazy. "It smells like feet."

Klaus laughed taking a portion of the cheese and partnering it with wine.

Stefan joined them with a glass that he filled for Caroline. "It's actually really good." he assured her.

Caroline sighed. "I'll accept the wine."

"Here's your chance to try something that doesn't come wrapped in oiled paper." Klaus spiked her.

She had a big sip of wine responding to the way he constantly instigated her in everything, when he smirked knowing that would further provoke her she grabbed a slice of the strange colored cheese and fearlessly had a big bite of it.

"What's your verdict?" Stefan asked curious.

"It's…" Caroline pursed her lips. "… salty. I'm not a big fan of it."

"This sort of cheese is considered an acquired taste." Klaus enjoyed his fine wine and cheese nonchalantly.

"Look at that, it's just like you." Stefan teased him evilly.

"That's highly debatable." Klaus grumbled.

It broke the other two into laugh and in contrast with the tense day, dinner was easy and relaxed, even paved with tales about Stefan's adventures with Klaus, and there were quite the bit since they were friends from back when they were just two kids trying to get a job at a record company.  
Instead of becoming enemies competing for the same vacancy, they became close friends who later found their real passion, Stefan's gift was to write songs and Klaus was a master when it came to managing.

After dinner Stefan vanished to his room, Rebekah had promised to call him again when she had a few hours free and irrefutably he was there to accept her Skype request.

Caroline was just finishing up drying the plates and putting them away in the cabinet when the softest melody cut the silence and she went to the living room expecting to find a pouting Stefan by the piano.  
She was about to ask if Rebekah was caught up at work when the stun ate away her words.

As she slowed her pace she was fully wrapped around the image of Klaus sitting at the piano with tree candles inside of a crystal support and a glass of bourbon keeping him company.

Klaus looked up from the piano without stopping his fingers from magically making music. "Is the shock caused by the surprise that I can play?"

Caroline reached the piano with a smile. "I didn't know you played so well."

Klaus dramatically pushed a few keys to make a terror entrance to his next sentence. "You don't know me."

Caroline laughed easily but his words harbored a harsh truth so she folded her arms over the piano keen on changing a few things tonight. "You are not a very easy person to like."

He stopped playing just so he could press his chest over-dramatically. "I am an adorable man."

She rolled her eyes. "You don't like people so you only talk to them when you need them and you are always doing something like talking on the phone or fondling with your tablet… or drinking." she heavily scolded him again. "Just so you don't have to actually maintain a real conversation that includes eye contact."

"Some say that I make them uncomfortable by looking straight at them or by talking too close to their faces."

Caroline lowered her chin but kept her scowl. "That's your way of keeping control over every situation, by intimidating people you remain guarded to the core."

"It's plausible." he said gracing the keys with his eyes instead of looking up.

Caroline's scowl transformed to sadness. "You're this really famous and rich man and yet there is so little that people know about your life, at first I thought it was just some really dope marketing stunt to keep you mysterious but…" she sighed. "I think that you are just lonely. You made all those artists huge and known but you never enjoyed any of it."

"We're not here to scavenge for my soul." he looked at her while starting to play the melody Stefan came up with. "We're here for yours."

Caroline knew he was shutting her down but instead of being mad, she was sadder than before, she lowered her head like she was letting it all lay to rest because he closed up entirely before she even peeked inside of the turmoil he nested inside of him but then Klaus stopped playing which made her lift her head a bit.

"I ran away from home when I was 15, there was a violent father that favored me when he was in the mood to be abusive and I only returned to England when he died two years ago. I kept in touch with my siblings but I still feel detached from them and by addition from the world." Klaus spoke of something he very rarely did and the dept in his voice accused that.

"That's why you love the showbiz so much, artists are nomads that don't fit anywhere and we frequently forge our own families." she warmly smiled at him because she understood him now.

"It's your turn love…" he demanded by restarting to play the melody from before.

"I don't know if I can do it." she said in a low voice. "It's a tough audience tonight."

Klaus' cunning leer sparkled through a barely lit room. "If you are going to use the trick of imagining your audience in their underwear, I'm a man of briefs."

Caroline burst into a roaring laughter and he laughed as well, with more will than he first intended but he still waited for her to sing nonetheless and after calming down Caroline crossed her lips with her tongue before singing the part she already knew by heart.

"_It's been awhile since…"_

Caroline didn't go far, singing just for Klaus was making her incredibly nervous and he wasn't indifferent to that, with a slow motion he put out two of the candles leaving only one lit for them.  
Then buried in a comfortable darkness with him, Caroline started singing the words that suddenly began to have another meaning to her.

_"It's been awhile since I've really cared, about something I never knew was there…"_

"We should do this one with a guitar instead of the piano." Klaus whispered softly.

"I'm calling it, _Why don't you stay_." she said before she carried on singing with feeling. _"… and I tried, oh how I tried…"  
_

* * *

"Stefan is arranging for the musicians." Klaus informed her as they went down the really busy street.

Caroline tried dodging someone but ended up hitting a big newsstand, it made the magazines slid almost to the floor but she managed to stop any major embarrassment and her candid smile did the trick with the grumpy man behind the counter.  
Klaus waited for her just down the street and she hurried to him somewhat avoiding any further awkward bumping, she was not used at all to the streets so full of people constantly rushing by her.

"So I will be singing soon with a band?" she tried picking up where they just abruptly ended.

"Yes, which means you can't talk more than necessary for the next few days." he asked her with a glare.

Caroline didn't understand and she looked at him confused.

"You can't tire your voice at all, we have one good opportunity that we cannot and I insist on that, we cannot mess up."

Caroline's answer came with the two thumbs that she lifted at him in silence.

He chuckled turning away from her. "That's the spirit love."

Her legs weren't that steady when they crossed the street because it was hard staying calm when she found herself right in the heart of Manhattan during a busy working morning.  
Curiously she paid attention to all the details she only knew by watching TV and she felt incredibly important by walking among all the men in suits and the fancy women in their sharp heels and outfits, obviously she wasn't sure in which street they were, but ultimately that was unimportant when they went inside this magnificent glass building.

"Why are we seeing a lawyer?" Caroline asked him as they went up to the 50th floor inside of a luxury elevator.

"You need someone to inform you about your rights and what you should expect in a contract before I bring you one to sign." Klaus explained while she went through the names listed on the elevator directory.

She tapped the one name that called her attention. "Bonnie Bennett Mikaelson… is she related to you?"

"Bonnie was married to my youngest brother Kol for a year or so before his love for partying hard ruined their marriage, after that she took his money and his name in a very swift divorce." Klaus explained just as they reached the floor he wanted.

In a small span of hours she uncovered more of Klaus that she ever wished for and it was with a cheerless mood that she listened to what he had to say next.

"I'm leaving you here for a meeting with her, she will answer every question you have and there is no time limit for it so take all the time you need, I on the other hand have a handful of things to do today so when you are done here, take a taxi and tell them to drive you to this address." he handed her Stefan's address along with an envelope containing money without waiting for her reaction.

Inwardly she was begging him to stay but she didn't show him that needy side of hers and simply agreed with a smile and a simple _ok_.  
Klaus left without looking back and she was escorted by a very pretty secretary to Bonnie's office.

The woman who greeted her was stunning, she had the most pretty green eyes Caroline had seen and the white bandage skirt that she was wearing was perfectly framed with a classic black silk shirt. "Hi, I'm Bonnie."

And she was nice on top of it all.  
Caroline introduced herself feeling under-dressed in her peep-toe shoes and simple black dress, she admired the large office before Bonnie invited her to sit with her in the black sofa.

"I'm not sure how much Klaus has told you about the purpose behind this talk…" Bonnie started with a smile.

"Klaus doesn't talk much." Caroline bit her lip knowing she was sinning, he had been frankly open to her lately.

"Some things never change." Bonnie shrugged reaching for a bottle of water on the coffee table in front of them.

As she did so, Caroline spotted a chain around her neck but not what was at the end of it and she refused the polite invitation to have coffee or water, she was too jittery for that. "I've never been in the presence of a lawyer before." Caroline admitted.

"You need to see me as a counselor and a friend, I'm going to work with you through all the legal aspects of your career and I will always be available to clear any doubts you might have about your contract or anything else for that matter."

Caroline narrowed her forehead puzzled. "Klaus told me the same but I thought he was the one handling the legal stuff as well."

Bonnie closed the bottle of water inspecting the beautiful blonde, though she looked naive Bonnie suspected she was as ferocious as they came and those were the ones she loved working with. "Klaus is what we call in the industry a _10 percenter_, he is a talent agent who finds jobs for artists and takes 10 percent of whatever they make, only that Klaus decided to top everyone's game and focus entirely in one artist at a time. As a manager his responsibility is to oversee your day-to-day business affairs and to advise you concerning the professional matters, that means that long-term plans or personal decisions which may affect your career will be monopolized by him."

"So he has full control over my career and my life." It wasn't even a question, Caroline had deduced this much by now and it was solely the reason they fought so much.

Bonnie offered her a soothing smile. "Usually booking agents lose track of what's important because they are handling too many people at the same time, Klaus on the contrary can afford to focus exclusively on someone for a period of time making that union slightly personal." Bonnie's chuckle came loaded with sass. "Though we all know how Klaus has a different take on being personal with someone."

Caroline chose to omit the bridge she forged with Klaus recently and instead tried getting advantage of Bonnie's connection to the family. "How well do you know Klaus?"

The blunt inquiry made Bonnie rub the back of her neck, by doing that the chain moved and finally Caroline saw what was hidden inside the shirt, a wedding band sparkled from under the black silk.

"I was married to his idiot brother and Klaus was at the wedding, the only casual conversation I've maintained with him so far consisted of how sunny the day was for a wedding. Frankly I like working with Klaus because he keeps everything very professional and he pays well."

Caroline slumped her shoulders discouraged, she was beginning to detest the word _professional_ so much.

* * *

"He was right about the guitar, the bastard really has a good ear." Stefan confessed to Caroline when they ended another working session, this time accompanied by a guitar instead of a piano.

She was dead tired but she still remained cheerful before he called it a day, when she turned to the window she realized it was night already, she had missed the hours flying by entirely.  
She also missed getting riled up by the devil and she decided to look for him in the guest rooms, he had been absent most of the day and now that she reached his bedroom, she could tell he was getting ready to leave again.

Caroline knocked on the door feeling the scent of his strong cologne already reaching her outside. "Hey, it's me… are you decent?"

"Not remotely." he replied opening the door for her.

Caroline didn't go inside right away, she remained by the threshold watching him go to the bed to pick up two ties.  
He was wearing black suit pants and a deep-red shirt, it wasn't the first time she saw him in a suit but tonight he looked extra handsome or maybe her mind was just being mean to her because she was imagining the entire picture when his jacket was still lying on the bed.

"I didn't want to interrupt your work with Stefan earlier but I meant to ask how your meeting with Bonnie went." Klaus was trying a tie that matched the shirt's color.

"I loved her, she explained everything in super detail and we are going to have lunch later this week." she answered revealing how easy it was for her to make friends.

"She's very good at what she does, I thoroughly enjoy working with her." Klaus tried the black tie now.

"Stefan and I finished another song." Caroline eagerly jumped straight to what she was dying to tell him.

"We only need one more original song to finish your sample and then I will start contacting everyone I know in New York." Klaus removed the tie unsure which one to choose.

"Are you going to meet with one of them right now?"

Klaus looked at the girl completely at ease with him, inside of his bedroom while he was getting ready to go out. "No." he picked up the strict tone as he did what he had. "I'm going to meet someone on a more private aspect."

Caroline took the swift shutting down of what must have appeared to him as silly infatuation and she did it with a mask of joy. "Uh, sexy time for Klaus."

He wasn't sure why the entire scene felt awkward to him but he smiled looking at the bed where his phone started buzzing.

Caroline turned away before the insane will to see if the name on the screen was female and famous took over her. "Well, have fun, I'm going to watch that marathon of Disney movies that starts tonight."

"Don't stay awake until late." he warned her severely.

Caroline stopped by the door with a promise. "And I'm staying away from the late snacks as well."

He eased on his always so harsh ways and smiled at her with honest softness, for the longest minute they held this unspoken talk with their eyes until the buzzing of his phone became too incessant to ignore.

"Take the black tie, it makes you look hotter."

Klaus looked up from the phone but he missed her by a second and was greeted by a closed-door instead, as he returned to his phone, the unsettling will to refuse the call grew of intensity.

* * *

"Do you need anything else from me Bonnie?" the secretary asked as she handed Bonnie a pile of files that needed her attention.

"No, that will be all for today." Bonnie dismissed her employee and lost her shoes once the other was gone.

She only skimmed through the papers unable to focus on them, the mention of Kol today left her wandering off the point all day and she wasn't even thinking when she opened the last drawer in her desk.  
Bonnie removed the stag of papers on top and then she reached for the picture she sadistically still kept, she curled up on her big chair remembering the day of her wedding and how much she was in love with the smiling man in the picture.

Kol had been the love of her life and she outlined his features wondering how much she was lying to herself by referring to it in the past tense.  
It was a major mistake but she grabbed her phone and slowly tapped his name in her list of contacts.

"_Hello darling."_

Bonnie closed her eyes, it was a monumental mistake because his voice stirred up everything inside of her that still wasn't healed.

"_How did you know that I was thinking of you?"_

Bonnie turned the picture upside down and left it on her desk, she stood up and started pacing around barefoot. "I called you because we need to do something about the house in the Hamptons."

Kol's laughter was telling, he knew it was an excuse to call him. _"What about our house darling?"_

"There is no _we _anymore Kol, we are no longer married and we can't keep postponing selling that house."

_"Darling, I refuse to sell my share of that house, it has nostalgic value to me."_

Bonnie snapped, it was the only thing that they couldn't agree upon the divorce and technically it was the only thing still connecting them together, the romantic part of her knew he was doing it on purpose because his ruthless denial to sell her his share of the house was obliging her to remain linked to him but it still pissed her off endlessly. "What sentimental value, you English prick? You've only been there once and we only bought that colossal house because it was _my _dream to have a house in the Hamptons."

_"Precisely love, I'm not ready to let go of your dream therefore we are keeping the house unless you find another buyer."_

Bonnie glared him all the way through the call. "Forget I called."

_"It's always a pleasure to listen to your voice Bonnie, feel free to call me again tomorrow." _he effortlessly teased her.

Bonnie ended the call regretting it like all other times, they always ended with her calling him prick and then needing a drink to forget how much she missed him.

* * *

It was really late and Klaus wasn't expecting to find anyone still awake when he arrived, well, he was half-right in his assumption because Caroline had fallen asleep on the couch.  
Klaus turned the TV off silencing _Aladdin _and then removed his suit jacket, he covered the sleeping princess on the couch with the jacket careful not to wake her and before he went to his room, he left her a gift on the coffee table with her name on it.

Surely the diary he just bought for her with a lock and a key would make her smile.

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

Happy - _C2C Ft. D. Martin _

Ghost - _Ella Henderson  
_  
Why don't you stay - _Candice Accola_

Fallin' - _Alicia Keys_

Prayer in C - _Lilly Wood &amp; The Prick and Robin Schulz (Robin Schulz Remix)_


	4. Unrequited

Leaning against the windowpane, Caroline was divided between watching the mesmerizing rain falling outside and writing on her new pink diary.  
When she chose the last one, she made endless notes about her new dream, one day she would have a residence in NY.

Caroline smiled making an exclamation point at the end of that sentence and then she closed her diary, it was rather silly to lock it but somehow it was like a joke that she now shared with Klaus so she made usage of that key.  
It was a rainy morning and she contemplated the grey weather for a little longer before hiding her diary under her pillow and heading for the kitchen.

Stefan was already there concentrated on her notepad. "Good morning gorgeous."

Caroline lifted an eyebrow at his glowing smile. "That was some loud Skype talk that you had with your wife last night…"

Stefan choked somewhat tongue-tied. "Well…"

Caroline teased him with a sizzling look while holding a steamy coffee mug between her hands. "I'm moving to the couch, my bedroom is way too close to yours."

He was aware his over-joy was all over his face and he saw no reason to hide the big news from his new friend. "Bekah is coming home next week, there is a big storm headed for Australia and everyone on set will be sent home for a week break so that means that my beautiful wife, the big movie star is coming home."

Caroline made this _aww_ sound. "I'm so happy for you Stefan."

"I can't wait to fall asleep and wake up with her physically here."

"You really are one of the good guys Stefan." Caroline sweetly told him.

He awkwardly refused to look at her and went back to the song he was planning next. "I have this melody stuck in my head that would fit this song you wrote while you were still in your hometown."

"_Song_…" Caroline grumbled. "There's nothing there that resembles a real song. You can't go around naming things like that."

Stefan wasn't remotely smiling. "You actually wrote some really good things in here Caroline."

She sighed most deeply into her mug refuting him.  
Stefan leaned back on his chair keeping his eyes on her, obviously he wasn't going anywhere without making her talk and Caroline sighed once more before she gave in.

"I was very naive when I thought that Marcel would like my lyrics and now I feel like a pathetic wannabe star by showing him that notepad, he barely read a line or two which is ultimately good because he would make fun of me endlessly."

Stefan found her pouting look as cute as they came. "Caroline, you don't have the life experience to write about heartache with depth but the way you've described a bad relationship is impressive because it comes from a very raw place and if you are capable of doing this already without that baggage, I guarantee that one day you will write epic songs."

Caroline had no option but to smile a little at him. "I really want to believe what you are saying because your writing abilities leave me speechless."

"My first song was about washing my car so thank God things progressed from there." Stefan cringed a little just remembering the embarrassing draft.

Caroline's giggle was a perfect ending to an easy morning talk and they headed for the piano ready to start a new working session, however things were delayed because Stefan received an important call from none other but Steven Tyler himself.  
It were moments like these that woke awareness in Caroline and made her feel blessed that she was working with someone so notorious yet humble like Stefan.

Judging by the time he was taking, it would be a really long talk so she decided to pick up the guitar while she waited for Stefan, she wasn't much of a player but her old guitar had seen the birth of a few songs, among them was a song that she had been thinking about lately.  
Knowing she was alone, Caroline ventured down a memory lane very close to her wounded heart and started singing.

"_It's more than a crack in the wall_  
_it's a whole lot bigger than we thought, yeah_  
_a hammer and nail won't fix it this time_  
_so bring on the wrecking ball_

_it's like we've been drifting along_  
_pretending like nothing's wrong, yeah_  
_we play the game, keep up the charade_  
_but when the river runs dry we're on different sides_

_you wait for rain and I chase the storm_  
_we just don't see it the same way_  
_you say you want change but you're never sure_  
_we can't go on like this anymore_  
_cause at the end of the day_  
_you wait for rain and I chase the storm_

_I was never good at standing still_  
_always got a hunger to fill, yeah_  
_don't think you ever understood that's who I am_  
_what we gotta face is we're in…_"

Caroline stopped singing surprised that Klaus had been listening to it all, he was leaning against the threshold and apparently for some time now.

"I don't recall reading about that precise song among your notes."

"I haven't written it down, I made the song a long time ago and I know it in my head." Caroline stroked the strings gently producing a soft sound.

Klaus left the threshold and she lifted her gaze enough to enjoy the sexy white Henley with long sleeves that he was wearing today while he found somewhat funny that on such a rainy dark day Caroline chose to wear a bright rainbow-colored top with yellow shorts.  
When their eyes went up from their chosen clothes and met, they mirrored the smile they had for each other.

"You were a witness to a painful divorce, maybe your parents?" Klaus jumped to a wise conclusion while sitting on the coffee table in front of her.

Caroline nodded. "It's not that I felt guilty that my father suddenly wanted a new family and life, I just felt powerless like my mother who still loved him despite his departure. I wrote this song because I never felt so lonely while my entire world was falling apart around me."

"We are born alone, we live alone and we die alone." he simply stated.

Caroline gave him a look. "You are as cheerful as the weather."

"I enjoy rain, it suits my mysterious personality."

"You are not mysterious Klaus, just guarded. We've already established that, remember?"

He tilted his head with a wary look. "Are you admitting that I am not related to Satan after all?"

Caroline teasingly wandered her eyes away from him. "I'm not sure yet…"

"And I'm still waiting to find out if I'm a storm or a rain."

Caroline smiled elated by his interpretation of her song but also by the way his scruff covered a very beautiful face.

There was this lingering moment when she felt as if the clouds were dissipating and leaving her feelings more lucid than ever, their connection wasn't ambiguous to her, she trusted him and she wanted to tell him exactly that by merely looking at him without a mask.  
But like all other times, Klaus was the first to break away and in good time as Stefan now left the den.

He pretended to ignore all the eye-smoldering business happening by the couch and sat at the piano. "Let's start our day, the rain is leaving me all inspired and I want to make songs." he moved his hands around like he was feeding from all the good energy inside the apartment.

Stefan was trying to reproduce the melody that had been dancing in his mind since he woke up, this time around he was determined to make something bright and less moody; they already had the big ballad so he wanted something different for Caroline's third song.  
In return she was waiting for Klaus to play his Alpha male card and demand that Stefan included what she had been singing before, the song was important to her and she needed that trust boost from him but Klaus was again deeply entertained with his phone.

"What do you think of this?" Stefan played the version he had already in his mind, it wasn't more than a couple of runs put together but he really liked it. Stefan looked up hopeful for positive feedback and he found it on a beaming Caroline but Klaus looked absent from the room altogether.

Caroline stood from the couch leaving her song behind and giving all her attention to Stefan's. "This is going to be a good one." she looked at Klaus again.

Indifferent to the work blossoming from the partnership or even to Caroline's silent plea, Klaus went to the balcony to make a call, it took him a few minutes to return to the living room and he went straight to his iPad.

"I'm getting so excited over this song we're working on." Stefan informed Klaus as he neared them.

Klaus closed the notebook once he reached the piano with a determined motion. "I suggest a cold shower or another one of those virtual outlets with my sister…" he smirked at Stefan. "Because we are putting this one on hold."

Stefan glared at him. "That's like telling a driver that he has to stop just as he is about to cross the finish line."

"I understand the magnitude of your disappointment Stefan but other pressing issues come into play now." Klaus was gliding his fingers fast across the screen of his tablet.

"I'm surprised that you actually know how to make that thing work, taking into consideration how much you hate technology and everything modern."

"Nothing but lies comes from you." Klaus expanded something he wanted to show them. "I enjoy modernity as much as anyone else but I am a man from the old days in my heart."

"It's sort of frightening to see you talk like that about something that is yet to be proven that exists." Caroline defiantly joined the banter.

Klaus was working hard to keep his smile hidden. "You should really be nicer to me and to my heart."

"Why?" she kept on daring him. "Because you gave me a diary? I'm trying to keep my panties from dropping…" she rolled her eyes with sass but flirtatious looked back at him.

Klaus chuckled taken by her audacity. "Perhaps what I accomplished this morning will bring a certain shame to all that arrogance."

"I'm not that easily impressed." she simply shrugged.

He was baffled, if there was ever a good word to describe his reaction, baffled was spot on. "Where is this boastful attitude coming from?"

"My agent and manager keeps telling me that I'm one of a kind and… _superb._" she ventured a British accent.

"That word has never parted from my lips."

He was serious but mentioning his lips made her look down to stare at them, it wasn't until he tensed his jaw that she realized he was actually upset.

"Over-confidence is an idiotic beginner's mistake." he snapped mad at her. "I beg you to be smarter than that."

The mood inside the room changed so much that she actually felt close to angry tears, first he didn't tell Stefan about her song and now he was reprimanding her; so with a single windy spur she turned her back on him to go away to her bedroom.

"I'm not done yet Caroline." he demanded for her presence to stay in the room.

Caroline stopped with a big breath and evidently the easy flirting look was gone when she looked back at him. "What is it?"

"We are going to an audition." he closed the iPad cover mad and went by her with the same angry vibe. "I'll be back in one hour with your dress."

Caroline opened her mouth to verbally put how confused she was but that wasn't an option for him and Klaus stopped her before she started.

"And make a braid."

Caroline turned to Stefan fishing for any clearance but instead of looking puzzled he appeared unhappy and Caroline found herself further lost.

* * *

Klaus gritted his teeth, she made him knock a few times before petulantly opening the bedroom door for him, she was now wearing a simple robe but there was a dashing fishnet braid ornamenting her head as he demanded, still she was far from looking complying about the rest.

"Do you have my dress your highness?" she was pertinent in her discontent.

Klaus silently handed her the big package which she took with a fake smile, then she closed the door on his face.

"Be ready in five minutes Caroline." he asked before leaving her doorstep.

Klaus met Stefan at the end of the hallway, it was clear that an unwanted conversation waited for him as well and Klaus yearned for the alcohol that would help stomach it all.

Stefan granted him the first taste of his poison before speaking up. "Are you going to tell her? Because if you don't, I will Nik."

Klaus eyed him powerfully. "I refuse to find any sense in what you just told me."

"Neither of you even acknowledge that I am present in the room while you are provoking each other."

Klaus made the most guttural denial sound. "I lack the time for this."

Stefan incredulously narrowed his eyes at him. "She's 19 years-old, she's full of dreams that you fuel but then you get overprotective when she wants to take risks."

"You've been drinking this instead of coffee." Klaus sarcastically waved his empty glass.

"You are scared that she might get hurt if she starts dreaming as high as you do. You are used to the backlash but she isn't and you got angry because you know that a cocky artist always slacks. You are starting to protect her from herself."

Klaus exchanged a single look with Stefan, he was ordering his friend to shut up but Stefan still had one thing to add.

"It becomes personal the second you start repeating to yourself that you will never cross that line." Stefan left the lobby crossing paths with a beautiful Caroline in a blue dress.

The dress was of an ocean blue color and the contrast between the way it hugged her upper body so well and the way it loosely hang from the waist down gave her this sweet Princess look, with a sulk she covered the dress with a long cardigan and waited for him to do something else rather than simply gazing at her. "Are we going somewhere or is this some sort of Cinderella fetish that you have?"

Klaus opened the front door for them. "As always, after you sweetheart."

Caroline went by him with a huff and she remained like that during the entire ride, he really chose a horrible day to piss her off, the rain was still relentless and she refused to look anywhere else but outside her window.  
When Klaus parked he made all the way to her side but she didn't wait for his chivalrous ways.

"Aren't you going to tell me what I'm auditioning for?" she asked him after a small race to escape the furious rain.

They found shelter on the other side of the sidewalk and she pulled the cardigan closer to her chest, it was cold so she stumped her heels on the ground as well.  
Klaus took his leather jacket and covered her with it, taken back to when she woke up enveloped in his smell Caroline searched his eyes wondering if they would be cold.

"A friend of my brother is auditioning a few singers for a song that will be used in a motion picture soon." Klaus' tone finally matched the change in his blue eyes.

"A movie song?" she struggled with her will to start ranting.

"It's a private audition that many would kill for."

Caroline's build up tension rose to a vehement shake of her head. "What am I doing here Klaus? I thought we were sticking to the demo and working on perfecting the original songs that we already have."

Upon her hectic moves, a raindrop settled on her cheek and Klaus startled her to a freeze when he swept her cheek with his thumb, it got worse for her when he gently cupped her cheek next.  
Caroline felt the heat burst from the skin he was shielding with his palm and she remained perfectly static while waiting for him to answer her.

"If you nail this Caroline, it's the biggest asset we can add to that demo, you will have a name behind a big brand and people will know you instantly, they will also be interested to know what else you have under your name and we will take advantage of all that hype to sell your demo and then your album to the best offer we get."

"What is this movie anyway?" she was much calmer now and the question came a bit hidden under the effect his touch was causing on her.

Klaus smiled revealing his dimples and took back his jacket, when he held a door for her, she knew it was time to remove her cardigan and show off the dreamy dress he bought for her.  
With a quick inspection, she made sure her image was immaculate and she went up the stairs next to him with a growing feeling that she was about to face a monumental challenge.

"Klaus." A man greeted him just as he spotted them arriving.

They shook hands while Caroline analyzed the man who wasn't as tall as Klaus but oozed this importance as equal as his, he was bald and the fashionable glasses gave him a Hollywood image that Caroline assessed at once.

"This is Caroline Forbes." Klaus introduced her with a hinted pride in his voice.

It made Caroline smile with even more will. "Hi." she joyfully told the man eyeing her curious.

"I'm Paul." he moved his hand in front of Caroline like he was wrapping her up in a nice bow. "If you have the voice to go along with the looks, I'm stealing you to myself."

She adorably laughed. "I've already been to Los Angeles and the city didn't treat me well."

Paul rolled his eyes with flair. "Honey, the city is like that old dirty mistress that we all try to leave but she's so naughty and good that we keep coming back for more."

Caroline laughed again entertained with the man but he didn't stay with them for long and after a quick exchange of words with Klaus, he vanished into a big room and from what Caroline could glimpse all the way from the lobby there were a lot of girls trying their luck today.

The door went open again and a man with headphones came out and handed Caroline a paper. "You have 20 minutes to memorize the song, then someone will call for you." he simply said before going away.

Caroline frowned but it didn't last because she saw what she was about to sing.  
**Audition song For**** the first time in forever ****for the Disney's animated feature film **_**Frozen**_

"Oh My God, Klaus!" she was on the way to a massive freak out. "You want me to sing a Disney song?"

"I took the liberty of assuming that you were an avid devotee." he was smiling expecting the big outlet that was covered by her hands.

"And I am!" she said behind jittery fingers. "Oh God, I heard of this movie, it's the one premiering this summer... ugh, I'm so nervous, how do you expect me to make this work at all?" Before he answered her a girl ran out of the room crying in utter misery, Caroline guided her head towards Klaus and lifted one eyebrow at him.

He took her shoulders with his hands. "Paul told me that they are looking for two girls to sing the song, it's going to be a duet and there will be two versions of the song. One they will use in the actual film sang by the actors which is the one already in production, while the version you will be singing will be featured in the official soundtrack. You are aiming to be the guarded, mysterious sister who has a secret that stops her from enjoying life fully unlike her other joyful sister."

Caroline scoffed. "No problem, I've got this."

"I believe you do." he quickly replied.

Caroline pressed her lips and pushed a finger against his chest. "Listen up Klaus, after I make a fool of myself in there we are really going to see a doctor because your personality swings can't be normal."

"I'm not telling you to go in there full of yourself because then they won't listen to anything you might tell them and nothing in this industry works as well as intelligent modesty but regardless of what I feel, you do have a talent and we are going to use it. I'm counting that you will be yourself in there."

"There's not enough time to learn the lyrics." she was being practical now.

"They can't risk having the song leaked so every girl in there shares the same circumstances, just focus on being adorable and singing like an angel."

"Do I get a cookie at the end?" she playfully widened her eyes.

"Only if you bring me the big contract with all that money, I need it or else I will have to sell my horses soon." he returned the playful tone, nonetheless he was scratching a harsh truth.

"Don't sell your stallions just yet." she handed him her cardigan and headed inside the room with confidence; on the way there, she caught just another girl leaving on the verge of tears but she kept a straight face as she sized her competition.

* * *

"Demanding that you maintain your image against your will and for publicity reasons only, is reason enough to allege a fault in your contract…" Bonnie took a few necessary notes on her agenda. "I will look into it as soon as I get back to the office and I will let you know later what we can do about this, in the meantime keep your mouth shut and don't start complaining to the magazines just yet." she strictly warned one of her volatile clients.

When she ended the call, she was suspicious that her advice would fall into deaf ears and that she would have not only one problem to solve later today but several.  
She signaled the waiter and asked for another glass of wine, it wasn't that sweet of her to actually be happy about it but if it wasn't for the problematic clients she would never have the reputation she had, she was a tough lioness and she enjoyed being one.

"White wine as requested." The waiter flirted bluntly with her.

Another thing that Bonnie was thoroughly used to and she reached for her glass with a good comeback, the smile was effortless but it didn't cross her mind that things could change so drastically during the next second.

"Hello darling."

Her green eyes shot in front of her and disbelief propelled her to drop her chin. "What on Earth are you doing in New York?"

"Nik called in for a favor…" he sat at the table like they were simple old friends catching up. "I'm a manager now as well, did you know? I'm managing Bekah and I have connections with the film industry now, so Nik needed a favor and I came to help a brother."

Bonnie dropped her head back and drank the entire wine in one take, she slammed the glass on the table forgetting about good manners altogether and that she was sitting at a very expensive restaurant table. "Why are you _here_ Kol?"

"I came to visit my wife." he shamelessly smiled while crossing his hands on top of the table so she could spot the wedding band that he was still wearing.

"Ex-wife." she hissed upset.

"You look beautiful Bonnie." he gave her a flawless puppy-eye look.

She gasped, the bastard was still slick with his tongue. "And you look like a bum." she lied about his new look, the stubble made him hotter.

Kol's naughty sneer came naturally. "I can't afford to look good, you drained me with the divorce."

Bonnie began to laugh, her entire body shook with the willing laughter. "I had a blast burning all that money along with the clothes you left behind."

Kol grimaced beyond reason. "I beg you to tell me that you kept one or two shirts."

"There's that one I use to clean my bathroom from time to time."

"How I missed your feisty temper." he sighed. "And your laughter."

"What do you want Kol, money?" Bonnie cut him off cruelly, she wasn't having any of this reminiscent talk.

He only smiled as an actual reply and left the table without giving her the pleasure of finding his real intentions behind the unexpected visit.

* * *

Caroline read the lyrics again, if only she had a little more time she would know them by now, unfortunately the line of girls was getting slimmer as they were asked inside of a smaller room to sing and she could tell that she was about to be called in next.  
She could hear the powerful voices from outside, some of these girls were clearly experienced on Broadway and it was surprising that so many were leaving discouraged.

"Caroline Forbes?" A woman asked after sending someone else out the door without a positive answer.

"That's me." Caroline had a deep breath and followed the woman to the auditing room.

She was taken to a large table at the end of the room and the same woman asked her to stand on a specific spot, there was a huge light next to her and she spotted someone filming her as well, it was just like being on some singing contest and Caroline tried to cling to that silly feeling.  
Instead of big executive producers, she tried imagining they were just the judges of her favorite reality shows and she introduced herself with a big easy smile.

"Where's the other girl? Wasn't that Davina girl paired to sing with this one?" a grumpy man asked without even glancing at Caroline.

She immediately knew he was the one she had to impress and she waited patiently for her turn to do so.

"I couldn't find her outside." The woman clarified why there was only Caroline standing there.

"Already clubbing hard and she only has a top single so far…" Paul said disappointed with youth. "That was fast…"

"What did you think of the song?" the only female present at the table asked Caroline with a warm smile.

"I love Disney movies, I've seen them all and I know all the songs so I find this one really beautiful. It reminds me of the old movies like _Beauty and the Beast_…" Caroline found that honesty was the right way to go.

"Would you be enchanted by it as a child?" the woman asked a bit on the fence.

"I'm a struggling artist who just recently started writing her own material so if I had managed to come up with something as witty and magical as this, I would be proud." Caroline was candid in her gestures and mannerisms which pulled a big smile from everyone in front of her.

Except the grumpy guy who decided to question her. "Are you really that impressed by a line that says, _I want to stuff my face with chocolate_?"

Caroline offered him one of her dazzling smiles. "I hope my voice makes it justice."

The others found her just the right kind of fierce and laughed while the guy pretended to be busy taking notes.

"Whenever you are ready." he grumbled.

There was a knock halting Caroline and everyone looked at the young girl rushing inside the room.

"I'm sorry I'm late, it's raining immensely and I had trouble getting a taxi and…"

The ill-mannered man interrupted her with a hand in the air. "Are you Davina?"

The girl nodded and took her place next to Caroline, she looked like someone barely recovering from a long night and her voice was hoarse as well.

"Do you want to take a few minutes to go over the lyrics?" the nice woman asked her.

"No, I have them." Davina straightened her wet hair and fondled with her paper that looked all wrinkled already. "I…" she smiled at the woman. "They aren't that hard."

Instantly Caroline knew no one would ask the girl another question and she wasn't wrong, the grumpy man ordered someone to play the recorded melody and pointed at Davina to start singing.  
The first notes were horrible, they were out of tone and things only got worse as Davina's hoarse voice produced a version that was all over the place, the runs were too rushed or too slow for the music and she was so nervous that she wasn't listening to the melody at all.

Paul raised his arm ending her part, by their faces Caroline guessed how bad the audition had went.

"I don't even know why you bothered coming here, your voice is straining and this was a mess." The grumpy guy huffed extremely upset that she made him waste his time.

Davina clasped her lips preventing the waterfall. "If I could do it again…"

When none of them spoke or even reacted, Davina lowered her head in defeat and left to cry outside.

"Ok, let's hear the blonde now." The same man who destroyed Davina's day gave Caroline's cue to enter.

She wasn't going to mess this up and she kept the paper in front of her as she started singing, one of Caroline's biggest virtues was her musicality and how easily she adapted her voice to anything she picked up by ear so easily she made the song her own.  
The other thing that was still very overlooked by Caroline herself was that when she sang it appeared like she did it to someone specific, although she was singing to a group of people, when she raised her head everyone felt like she was singing only to them and that was rare and ultimately special.

When the music stopped Caroline was petrified, she was only a few verses in and she only sang the chorus once when she was cut off, Caroline gulped down fearing she didn't have enough time to show all that she could do and her eyes drifted at once to the grumpy guy who was smiling at her.

"We have our Elsa." he said utterly fascinated by Caroline.

* * *

Davina sniffled loudly when the blonde came out of the room bouncing and squealing in extreme glee.

"Did you get the part of Elsa?" she asked between big fat tears that streamed down her face.

The blonde waned down from her thrill and sat next to Davina with a caring smile. "I'm Caroline." she said sweetly.

"Davina…" the other sniffled again. "My manager is going to be so mad that I didn't get the part."

Caroline reached out taking Davina's hand. "Is he waiting outside for you?"

Davina shook her head. "Enzo had to go with another singer to a meeting and I came alone."

"Do you need us to take you home?"

Davina smiled. "That's really nice of you Caroline but that's ok."

"Are you sure?" she insisted.

Davina's shoulders gave in a little. "You should be celebrating not sitting here worried about me, I shouldn't have gone out last night. The music was too loud and I tried talking over it so that ruined my voice…"

"It's just one audition, next time it will be better." Caroline assured her.

Davina nodded with a smile now. "Thank you Caroline, that's the nicest thing anyone has told me lately... I'm starting to worry that I'm going to fall into that _one hit wonder _label so I really hope life treats you well." Caroline gave her a tight hug which felt better than anything that happened in Davina's life so far. "Oh and congratulations." she added happy that the blonde got the big prize.

* * *

Klaus put his phone away, he had been going back and forth with it while waiting for Caroline but she was taking so long that he was genuinely beginning to worry.  
Finally she showed up but her expression was one of murkiness, she was dragging her feet and looking down so Klaus held her cardigan open for her with a small induced smile.

"I will start by selling the grey stallion, he is by far my least favorite horse." Klaus said while helping her with the cardigan.

Caroline kept her game going and looked at him miserable. "Are you raging mad and about to yell at me?"

"I need a drink before that." he released the braid that was caught under her cardigan.

Caroline nodded slowly. "You should wait until they call you to schedule the recording session of the next frigging Oscar." her voice raised and she excitedly grabbed him by his jacket. "I got the Elsa part!" she shrieked excited.

Klaus was stunned by her trick and squinted at her with a threatening scowl. "The reenactment was just for fun then?"

"It was revenge because you were an ass to me this morning." she crossed her arms looking straight at him in the eyes.

"Was that before or after I arranged for this?" he pressed her with a another squint.

"That doesn't excuse your jerk mood."

"I thought I made clear why I was harsh on you this morning."

"Stop treating me like I'm an imbecile Klaus." Caroline snapped. "Whenever we are alone, you have this soft side that soothes me but throw someone else inside the same room and you become ruthless and even cruel to me, so if I'm crossing some sacred line here, I'm sorry but it's your fault because you made me trust you enough for that."

Klaus chose to remain quiet and the silence between them was heavy all the way back to Stefan's home.  
Caroline was admiring the rain wildly hitting the glass elevator when Klaus pressed the red button that immobilized them and she turned around puzzled to face him.

Klaus licked his lips once, setting the mood for the talk. "I can't show how tolerant I've become towards you in front of Stefan, or anyone else. That's how nasty rumors start."

Caroline took a small step closer to him. "How about when we are alone?"

Klaus' faintest pause was fire to her agony. "Caroline… there is something that I need to tell you."

She didn't want to hear it, God, it was as if blood was clotting in her veins and she was about to lose control over the one thing she suspected but still wasn't ready to find out if it was true so her brain reacted before her body. "Stop worrying so much, Stefan knows that we are only leading a very platonic relationship. We've got this covered." she tried to giggle while she reached out to push the button that would make them move again.

When she was straightening up she slowly looked at him and the proximity brought forward this big unspoken electric force between them, the rain was violent outside but she knew her heart was loudly advertising how much she was attracted to him.

"I can't do this with you Caroline."

His whisper made her world stop turning but she unconsciously inched closer to him, she looked at his lips before she searched for his eyes.  
His warm thumb grazed her chin and that made her close her eyes.

"I just can't sweetheart…" he whispered again.

Caroline opened her eyes finding him staring at her with a different glow in his eyes and she wished that there was a way to stop what was taking over her.  
Following that raw impulse she made the space between them even smaller and his hand contradicted his words, Caroline's breath dropped to an uncontrolled sigh as he warmed her cheek and then her neck.

His strong hand made the slightest motion to bring her face closer to him and Caroline's tongue flicked across her lips wondering how it would feel to kiss him.  
When he didn't take that final leap, Caroline was mature enough to know it wasn't their moment and she pulled away from him leaving the elevator as soon as they reached their floor.

She was tucking her braid and her dented ego when she saw a blonde knocking on Stefan's door.

The other girl heard her and turned around for a question. "Do you know if Stefan is home? I've been knocking for a while without an answer."

"Are you Rebekah?" Caroline asked intrigued.

"No." the blonde girl chuckled amused and looked past Caroline to the man now reaching the hallway. "I'm Camille."

Caroline frowned following her as she went straight to Klaus and then to her utmost terror, the girl kissed him on the lips with an easiness of who was accustomed to those raspberry lips of his for a while now.

"I'm Nik's fiancée." Camille said snuggling close to his chest. "And you must be Caroline."

Caroline's eyes were the only thing working in a paralyzed body and she looked at him wondering if it was sorrow that she found in his eyes.

* * *

**Soundtrack**

You wait for rain - _Kyler England_

Warm - _Sam Alone &amp; The Gravediggers_

Fallout - _Sofi Bonde_

Make it to me - _Sam Smith_


	5. Bring it on

Her hair was caught in a ponytail, it matched entirely the simple clothes she chose to wear for dinner, one that she wasn't rushing to as she closed the door of her bedroom.  
She had to dig for a deep breath before she actually stepped away from the door and headed for the living room where they were all having a lively conversation.

"Caroline." Stefan welcomed her into the room with his usual warm smile. "Do you want to have something to drink before dinner?"

She shook her head with a small smile. "No… I'm good." she made sure that her words weren't followed by a shift of her gaze towards Klaus.

"I wouldn't mind another glass of wine." Camille said easily while dangling her empty glass.

"I have to check on dinner but Nik will get a new bottle for us." Stefan called the other man with him into the kitchen fully aware that Klaus was itching for a private talk.

And Klaus almost beat him to it. "You called her." he confronted Stefan with a glare that resembled a murderous stare.

"Actually I didn't." Stefan answered calmly to the hiss. "But I should have."

"It's a bit of a coincidence that she decided to visit the day that you've threatened to expose her." Klaus snapped.

"_Threatened_… _expose_…" Stefan opened a bottle with flair. "All big and heavy words when we are talking about the woman you are set to marry… willingly." he added the small barb poking Klaus' eternal resolution to do things his way regardless of what everyone else thought.

Klaus warned Stefan with a hand that was very close to be turned into a fist. "She shouldn't be here, not now, not like this."

"_She _is called Camille and it really bothers me that you won't use her name when you are talking about your future bride."

"I had no idea you liked her so much." Klaus was snarky this time.

Stefan gave Klaus a long look to which he responded by turning his back on Stefan and resting his hands on the counter.

"Even if I think that this engagement was a mistake from the start, you can't ignore that it exists just because you started caring for someone else. It's not fair to neither of them."

Klaus looked back with a frown. "Don't be absurd."

"About Camille being the absolute wrong person for you or about you not being the right person for Caroline?" Stefan went back to the living room taking the bottle with him.

* * *

Camille smiled interrupting the heavy silence. "This silence is kind of awkward…"

Caroline half-smiled, she was busy inspecting every tiny detail about the elegant woman in her presence. "I guess I should start by introducing myself properly."

"Oh, I know all about you." Camille softly laughed. "Nik is really excited about your talent, I have to kiss him most of the time so that he stops talking about you."

Caroline narrowed her eyes a little. "I find that really surprising…"

"I think I just talked too much…" Camille pressed her lips as the men returned to the room. "I know how much you enjoy holding back validation when it comes to your clients." she focused on Klaus.

"Klaus has validated me from the start whenever the time called for it." Caroline's frown was mostly confused. "Pampering me won't make me feel as accomplished as an earned compliment."

Camille's reaction was this strange laughter and she looked for Klaus' reaction, she found him serious but looking at Caroline proud and she backed away on her laughter because she saw Caroline slowly glancing at Klaus.

"Your wine." Stefan pulled her back from the careful analysis of what was happening right now.

"Thank you." Camille wasn't particularly joyful at this point.

"Are you sure that you don't want some of this?" Stefan sweetly asked Caroline.

"You shouldn't insist Stefan." Camille guided her glass to her smiling lips. "Caroline is barely legally allowed to drink alcohol."

Caroline's blue eyes looked at Camille with stun for the unexpected throw. "I feel really uncomfortable right now Klaus because your fiancée knows me so well while I haven't heard a word about her during all the months we've worked together." she fished for some sympathy in him.

"My Nik is always so reserved." Camille defended her turf with a swift comment and a hand that caressed Klaus' features.

The message reached Caroline with a bang but she had a hard time keeping her mouth shut when she wasn't happy about something. "Do you work in the industry as well?" Caroline had to gather information on her own since no one was telling her a thing.

Camille chuckled with disdain as she had another long sip from her wine. "I'm a psychologist."

_A doctor._ Caroline's mind wanted to stop working on the spot but she still battled through. "Sounds fitting, your husband to be is very unstable and moody. I keep telling him that he needs professional help." It was the first time she used the damn word with pleasure but her smile didn't last long.

Camille maliciously made her icy smile grow. "He's perfect where he is required the most." she moved her eyebrows to guide Caroline's understanding through her innuendo.

"Dinner is ready." Stefan finally took action to stop the tension growing among the group.

Caroline went after him as he left the room, she had enough and she was still supposed to endure a full dinner, as Camille got ready to follow them Klaus called her coldly.

She gulped down anticipating the way he would be furious at her but she kept calm as she faced him. "I know how to read people Nik and after we are done with this gracious dinner, I really want to know why the infant is looking at you like she's grief-stricken."

"The only one behaving childishly here is you Camille." Klaus went ahead of her to the table.

Camille gritted her teeth upset and had the rest of her drink for force.

* * *

Dinner was painful to sustain for everyone, poor Stefan was the one making up all the topics and when he ran out of them he decided to drink and eat quietly, it was a nightmare after that because Camille drilled Caroline with every possible question that went from what she did in high school to what she liked reading.  
Caroline's answers didn't flow as naturally as her personality should allow them, the other woman made her nervous and she thought through every answer which made her feel like a moron for liking cheer-leading and picnics.

One of her enormous speeches was dismissed by Camille who took the chance to touch Klaus.  
She kept touching his hair, his hand, his stubble or his arm, when Klaus finally growled irritated, Caroline wrinkled her lips to hide the big grin.

Camille eased up on her scheming behavior and thankfully for Caroline dinner ended as well, she volunteered to clean the kitchen alone because that gave her the chance to be away from the couple of the night.

She was already placing the last plates inside of the washing machine when one of them slipped from her wet hand and shattered on the ground. "Crap!" she cursed her lack of attention and squatted to clean the mess she just made.

The plate was destroyed into a hundred different little pieces and although she was careful gathering them all, she somehow managed to stick a tiny little scrap into her palm and the nasty little bugger hurt her like she was hosting needles in her palm.  
Caroline shoved her hand under the running water but she couldn't see a thing under the spray and pulled her palm closer to her face for an intense inspection.

She could see the piece of glass sticking but the further she scratched it, the further it buried under her skin.  
And it was in huffing and cursing mood that Klaus found her, she stopped her scratching movements a little as he silently came neared her.

"It's… a…" she wandered off only to stop as he took her hand.

His touch wasn't particularly gentle but his powerful grip wasn't scary by no means, he was just strong and Caroline wasn't used to that.  
All her life she was forced to be the strong one, the one who took charge and now she was constantly around someone who was a leader by nature, someone like her.

"It's a silly cut." she said once she grew used to the warm sensation of his hand cradling hers.

"I wasn't sure if I should tell you…"

His voice interrupted her attempt to keep a steady breath going and Caroline looked up from the smallest line of blood that formed on her palm, in contradiction he kept his eyes low.

"She seems very intellectual." Caroline almost sounded respectful about her compliment.

The slightest shove with his nail was enough to free the small fragment from under her skin and he kept looking down as he talked to her. "This has never been a problem in the past."

Why was he such a lover of riddles and half words that only made her want to decipher him like he was an undisclosed mystery hidden from the world?

"I won't be one now…" she was sure of it. "There's no reason for her to be so insecure, really." Caroline shook her head with a small chuckle. "You obviously love her."

Klaus lifted his eyes while keeping his chin low and he gave her a long teasing look that ended with a smile. "That was a very delicate approach."

She redrew her hand away from his at once. "I don't care about your feelings regarding another woman."

"Skipping right into blunt, are we?" he tried to keep his smile but Caroline was visibly upset, and in addition his phone was ringing.

"You should take that call because it could be something related to my career." Caroline wrapped a napkin around her hand hastily. "The only thing that links us."

He clenched his teeth reacting to the way she stormed away goaded and it was hard for him to take the call without sounding troubled himself.

* * *

Caroline didn't stop, not when she reached the living room and certainly not when she saw Camille and Stefan talking in the balcony, it was time for a time-out from everything and she went outside of the apartment.  
It felt good to be in the hallway away from them all and with a big sigh Caroline leaned against the wall, when the big uproar happening inside of her calmed down she slid down the wall and sat on the ground.

Protecting herself from the pain that she was still pushing away, Caroline hugged her knees and lowered her head thinking about what was truly happening to her.  
Minutes went by without hurry and softening up to reality she found the answers easily at her reach, her chest was aching for a reason.

"Are you all right?" an unknown female voice echoed in the hallway closely to Caroline.

She moved her head catching at first a pair of stylish shoes and then some long legs inside of skinny jeans, finally her eyes landed on a beautiful blonde with amazing hair. "Rebekah?" Caroline prayed that she got it right this time.

The blonde squinted. "You have to be Caroline."

Caroline stood up happy like she was meeting a best friend that she hadn't seen in a while. "I am and God, you are hot."

Rebekah laughed. "Stefan said that you were this adorable cupcake and he was right."

"We became friends…" Caroline anxiously wanted to add a long version of how it was entirely possible for a man and a woman to be friends without becoming romantically involved but Rebekah threw both of her hands in the air before she started.

"I know my husband." Rebekah simply said with this unwavering self-belief.

Finally a relaxed smile came from Caroline but not an actual remark.

"So is there a reason to find you sitting on my floor?" Rebekah liked the girl just like Stefan said she would.

"I needed a break from my life." Caroline gushed out.

"Don't let it get to you." Rebekah suggested amiably. "Whatever it is that is weighing you down, don't let it rule your life. No one but you decides how to live it."

Without a doubt it was the nicest thing she heard all night and Caroline smiled with a few tears being sent back to where she didn't want them to leave.  
The girls looked at the door when Stefan came out looking for Caroline, he was hoping to find her but he wasn't ready to see her with company.

"I didn't expect you until next week." Stefan was staring at Rebekah like she was a real size hologram.

"They wanted to hold me there but I pulled an actress tantrum and jumped on the first flight home." Rebekah cutely pouted. "I wanted to be with my sweetheart."

He left the threshold with two big steps and cradled her face between his hands so he could kiss her, it was the sweetest most romantic kiss that Caroline ever saw outside of her TV and it melted her entirely.

"I missed you Bekah." Stefan admired the woman smiling at him with love.

"It feels good to kiss you without having to imagine how it feels like." she purred while toying with the hair in the back of his head.

Stefan chose another kiss to tell her that he felt the same way and if watching one kiss was endearing for Caroline, the next two were her signal to leave but to confront her decision Klaus and Camille were leaving the apartment.

"The studio that we are using just became vacant so we will start recording tomorrow morning." Klaus explained the call he received in the kitchen.

Caroline unconsciously hugged her ribs like she was hit with sudden panic. "This is it then…"

"You will do great." Stefan stroked her shoulder for some comfort and looked at the man who should be doing it instead of him. "I have the band ready to go so I'll just give them a call." he kissed Rebekah one more time before he went to make those important calls.

"Are you moving out now that I'm home?" Rebekah asked Klaus with a hand on her waist and a very moody expression.

"I'm giving your husband a break now that you are here to drain him." Klaus deliciously smiled.

So did Rebekah who softened her face to a big sweet smile. "How are you Nik?"

Klaus motioned closer to kiss her cheek and he warmly enclosed an arm around her. "Happy to see you little sister." he whispered against her ear.

Rebekah closed her eyes with a hand pressing his back. "Why are you still attached to that dreary figure?" she asked him in a murmur.

Klaus cautioned her to be quiet with his eyes when they pulled away from each other. "I'm taking Camille back to the hotel."

Rebekah rolled her eyes on him before she searched for the girl like she only saw her now. "Oh, you are here… I hadn't seen you."

Used to the cutting personality, Camille answered Rebekah effortlessly. "Believing that no one is good enough for your brother is a sign of unhealthy love for him."

"If I need your medical opinion I will pay for the consultation." Rebekah tilted her head with a sneer.

Camille walked away without another word, Rebekah had the power of making her lose her temper and she hated losing her calm like that.

"Be ready around 8 in the morning, I will be here to take you to the studio." Klaus told Caroline somewhat immune to the everlasting snarky battle existing between his sister and his fiancée.

Caroline's eyes were a poor mask to how she felt inside, she only nodded because if she talked right now, she would tell him how much the idea of him spending the night with Camille was truly upsetting her.

Stefan exchanged a small motion of his head with Klaus as they crossed paths in the hallway and he took Rebekah into his arms with a soft kiss on her lips. "You are a really good actress… why can't you pretend that you like Camille?"

"I'm bored just looking at her and I don't have to pretend when it comes to Nik, I love him so much that I would help him hide a body if he asked me to…" Rebekah melted against Stefan's chest. "Preferably if it was Camille's."

Stefan laughed unable to scold her, he would do the same for Klaus.

* * *

Caroline left to her bedroom without interrupting the couple, she closed herself inside and sat on the bed with teary eyes, next to her was the blue Princess dress she wore today and with a few escaping tears she pushed it to the floor before curling up in her bed.  
Fairy tales weren't for her, life kept reminding her of it.

* * *

"… I don't think she would like any other girl you chose, Rebekah has assumed this motherly role in your life, she cares for you like a mother would, always concerned of your choices and…" Camille stopped talking because Klaus was staring blankly at some sign in the hallway. "Nik?"

"Were you speaking about Rebekah?" he assumed that's all she did for the last 40 minutes.

Camille finally found the key of her bedroom inside of her bag. "Never mind." she sighed opening the door, when he didn't follow her instantly inside, she looked at him surprised.

"I have to take Caroline early to the studio." he said without moving an inch closer to her.

Camille lowered her shoulders taken by the cold dare. "You are upset because of my behavior tonight."

He simply kept quiet while looking at her.  
It was up to her to make damage control and Camille tossed her bag to the sofa so that she could have her hands free, she stepped outside to cup Klaus' face and brought her sweetest game on.

"I may have all the talk mastered but when it comes to you, I am as silly as any other jealous woman. When you told me about Caroline, I didn't expect her to be so pretty."

Klaus still didn't bother talking so Camille rested her lips against his for a small kiss that he didn't answer.

She tried to sound apologetic in her voice when she talked again. "But you have never given me anything to complain about, all the other singers you've worked with have never been a threat to our solid relationship and I think it's common sense to admit that this kid won't be any different."

It scared her that Klaus only reacted after those words, his hands were now on her arms and she anticipated that he was about to break their moment so she did what her experience taught her so far.

"It's been a rough night for us, I've been…" she had her hands on each side of his neck. "… annoying and even I know that so let me make it up to you. Come inside so we can fix this." Camille kept him close for her next words. "I mean… she's young and you will make her very famous, then she will go on with her life and have many boyfriends and forget all about her silly crush on the father figure you represent in her life and after she's gone, I will still be here loyal and ready to marry you."

The slightest tension crossed his features and Camille knew she had him, when she kissed him again, she made sure he answered.

"I love you and I know that you love me so let's not be fools and let something so silly ruin our night." she said before taking his hand and expecting him to follow her inside the room.  
It was a relief that he did after a few seconds of hesitation.

* * *

The dress had a corset feel to it from the waist up while the skirt was as tight as Bonnie liked it, she was straightening her short hair and while she was doing it she was looking at the closet through the mirror.  
Her multitasking routine allowed her to choose the right blazer before she was done with her hair and after adding a pair of dangling earrings she went for the short dark blue blazer that would look magnificent with her pale-blue dress.

She was just finishing up when she not so randomly drifted her eyes to the left side of her closet, she picked a few accessories for her day but her eyes just wouldn't leave her closet so she returned to it just as she was about to leave the house.  
Slowly Bonnie pushed a few clothes to the side exposing the ones she couldn't stop thinking about.

There, among all the stuff she didn't wear anymore were his Henleys, Jeans and jackets and Bonnie touched them with this growing guilt that she didn't burn them like she should have.  
True that she used a few to clean the house in anger and even shredded every picture they had together but she still kept her favorite clothes of him.

A call pulled her away from her unexpected pause and she covered his clothes again with determination.  
The call was from one of her clients that weren't residents in New York but still couldn't live without her services and she was just arranging a meeting by video-conference when she closed her front door.

"I…" she halted shocked. "… will text you later." she sort of clumsily ended her call.

"Good morning darling." Kol was waiting for her in the stairs of her house and he was waiting with two coffee cups in his hands.

"What is this?" her puzzled eyes went from his hands to his shaven face.

"I came to say good morning and I shaved like you suggested." he handed her a cup of coffee.

She scorned him and his offer and went down the stairs refusing both. "Now that we aren't together anymore you decided to bend to my wishes?"

Kol smiled fully expecting the disdain and went after her, he tilted his head admiring the short dress and how hot her ass looked in it, which he was forced to stop doing when she suddenly turned to him.

"Stop looking at my ass." she ordered him.

"I can look at your legs instead." he smirked. "I rather miss them locking around my waist."

Bonnie fumed with narrowed eyes and a blazing stare. "Don't make me get a restraining order."

He handed her the coffee again with an innocent puppy look. "Give me five minutes before that."

She wasn't able to keep looking at his eyes, they were her weakness. "Speak." she yanked the coffee from his hand.

"I discovered my hidden talent for managing…"

She cut him off with a mean chuckle. "It's all about being ambiguous and charming, it's not a surprise that you are good at it Kol."

He smiled like listening to his name on her lips was reason enough to make a grey day turn bright. "I'm really getting the feel of it Bonnie but I could use the right legal advice while I'm trying to make a name for myself."

"So that's why you are back in New York." Bonnie didn't hide the disenchantment that started to sting.

He was elated with it. "I could use the help love."

"I'll give you the name of a few advisers who are really good at what they do." she was ready to end his five-minute plea.

Kol stretched out his hand and took the delicate chain around her neck and then the wedding band she kept there. "I came back for you Bonnie."

She tried to stop his hand but his smile reached his eyes and that delayed her response.

"And I'm not being ambiguous about that Bonnie Mikaelson." he smiled brushing the skin on her neck.

Bonnie gulped down forcing herself to stand still as he left her behind.

Just before he crossed the street, Kol looked back at Bonnie with gravity. "And I'd appreciate if you stopped staring at my ass." he shouted at her.

An old lady gave Bonnie a funny look as she walked by her and Bonnie unpredictably started smiling, she looked away from Kol when he winked at her from the other side of the street but the ridiculous smile became a tamed easy laughter without fuss.

* * *

Rebekah smugly kissed the way up his heaving chest, she even had time to play with his nipple once before she rested on top of him and stroked his face.  
Stefan was panting and had his eyes closed, he was so beautiful to her that she could stay there staring at him for the rest of her days and not become regretful of it for a second.

"Caroline's recording session starts in a few hours and you didn't let me sleep at all…" he opened his eyes to smile at her.

Rebekah grinned. "I'm a very demanding woman and I missed every inch of you… but wait, is that you complaining? Because I was away for months and I'm sure you envisioned all the things we've done tonight while you were in the shower thinking of me, the difference is that I am here now more than willing to do it all over again."

Stefan turned them on the bed, now that he was on top of her he gave her a long kiss that lazily stopped time inside of their bedroom.  
Far from a complain it was a reply equal to hers and once he left her lips, he started mapping her body with his hands and tongue, he lingered on all the things that left Rebekah moaning loudly until she sounded close enough to have him.

Stefan hauled away from her and took her hands as he sat up, Rebekah nested herself on his lap kissing him before she guided him inside of her.

"I love you Stefan…" she whispered as he started meeting her movements while gripping her waist.

"Bekah…" he groaned her name with every rocking sway of her body. "I love you so much…" he held on to her unwilling to let her go now that he had her back.

Rebekah rested her forehead against his and smiled. "And this is what I'm thinking about after our Skype talks." she pushed him down to lay on the bed.

Stefan kept his fascinated eyes on her while she closed her eyes riding him slowly.

* * *

"Did you sleep here?" Kol asked surprised that Klaus was already sitting in the restaurant waiting for him.

"I left the hotel as soon as Camille fell asleep." Klaus confessed with melancholy.

Kol scrunched his face. "Without torturing me with the details, do you want to address any of that?"

Klaus smiled behind his mug of coffee. "We are such great siblings because we don't really care about one another."

"What are you rambling about? You are my healthiest relationship." Kol put the menu away settling on a big breakfast for his order.

"You meant longest, I think."

Kol showed him his hand with the wedding ring. "I met Bonnie on my first day in Cambridge and even after we divorced, I still talk to her every week." he motioned his hand in the air like he was shaking it. "You and I talk when I need money."

"That's every day Kol." Klaus smiled with a big showing of his dimples.

"All about to change big brother." he tapped the table excited. "I will be making a lot of money if this film Rebekah is shooting does well in the box office."

"The only thing Bekah is doing right now is my friend Stefan."

Kol sighed. "I hope she doesn't look as miserable as you do after your night."

"I'm not doing Stefan, perhaps if I was…" Klaus raised his eyebrows.

Kol laughed and it wasn't hard to get Klaus on board.  
After having his breakfast delivered, Kol had a feast under an amused look from Klaus.

Kol wasn't much older than Caroline and already he had a thousand jobs he flamboyantly messed up, a marriage with the love of his life that he also messed up but somehow he was so terribly innocent-looking that it was impossible to stay mad at him.

"Did you talk to Bonnie?" Klaus was tempted to provide more than money to Kol, not that his advice was worth gold but still…

Kol shrugged. "There might be a great load of resentment from her but I could be mistaking it with simple hatred."

"You just woke up one day and decided that you wanted her back?" Klaus genuinely wanted to unravel his brother's reckless mind.

"I've been in love with Bonnie since college and that didn't change because we signed a piece of paper stating that we weren't married any longer."

The smallest crack on Klaus' steel features showed. "How did you know that you wanted to marry her?"

Kol pushed his plate away and grabbed his coffee with a smile. "She wasn't the one that I could live with, she was the one I couldn't live without… she still is."

Klaus looked at his brother in a midst of troubling thoughts and a smear of awe.

* * *

Caroline was waiting for Klaus in the street already when he arrived to Stefan's building, she wasn't risking being stuck with him in an elevator.

"Good morning." he was far from his usual detachment but he wasn't exactly warm either when stopped near her.

Caroline answered him barely audible and waited for him to start walking so that she could follow him.  
Klaus pointed left and she shot in front of him, she was kept to herself the entire time, there weren't any goofy accidents and joyful blabbering, instead Caroline was solemn and silent.

He took her arm when she was ready to go left again and instead of some snapping comment all she did was wait for him to point the right direction for them.

"Stefan managed to book this group of musicians that are really good, some of them used to tour with Winehouse but now they are taking a break from the life on the road and they just do Studio work…" Klaus tried spiking her interest and hopefully some life into her.

"Sounds nice." Caroline answered while trying to find her hands inside of this huge hoody sweater that she was wearing.

Klaus stopped in front of a coffee shop. "Did you have breakfast already?"

Caroline was looking at something on the other side of the street, obviously trying to avoid looking at him and Klaus had this deep loud breath before looking for her chin, when he turned her face to him Caroline was barely keeping a sniffle at bay.

"I'm not hungry."

It was visible that she had very little sleep and the longer he looked at her, the biggest was the feeling that she had been crying. "Sweetheart…"

Caroline snapped with the word, although it was usual for him to use it she wasn't allowing it around her today. "Go get coffee if you want for yourself, I'm good."

"I suppose we shouldn't be late on our first day." he quietly said.

"I agree, so let's get going." she bravely kept her head high although she was feeling crumbled inside.

He led the way and neither spoke again, they didn't even look at each other and the space between them was awkwardly big as they walked side by side.  
It lasted all the way to the studio and the only real relief for Caroline was that there wasn't an elevator in the building because seeing a bunch of loud guys laughing and making a lot of noise in the small lobby was chilling.

By the clothes, tattoos and weird sunglasses, she could tell they were musicians and Caroline hid her hands inside the sweater again, wishing she could disappear altogether into it.  
A cute guy with black hair hit the chest of another one that was dozing off.

Caroline swallowed so hard it could be heard miles away when they all looked at her and the room went silent.

"Please tell me that you are Caroline." A gorgeous man with dark skin and bright green eyes stood up pointing at her.

"Maybe…" she said struck by the way they were all smirking at her.

"Score." The cute guy jumped from the sofa and had a little run towards her. "I'm Tyler, that's Jesse and the two ugly guys in the back are Jeremy and Matt."

Caroline smiled, they were all so pretty and everyone protested because he was hogging her, within a blink she found herself surrounded by the group and she had a hard time answering all the questions they were making.

"Stefan says that you have your own material." one particular question stood out for her once the usual personal questions were answered.

She looked at her inquirer. "Jesse?"

He nodded with a big smile.

Caroline returned it. "I do but he worked on the songs mostly so we should wait for him?" she looked around for Klaus who disappeared in the meantime.

"He sent me the songs yesterday and I've already been through them." The blonde man with really clear blue eyes said. "I'm Matt." he added knowing she wouldn't know it.

"Is there a chance you could all wear little tags with your names on it?" she fretfully laughed.

They all laughed and turned their back on her to grab their things, they headed inside the studio with all that commotion from before and all that Caroline could do was cover her face.

"Are you going to faint?" Klaus asked after finding her humming some strange mantra.

"No…" she answered behind her hands.

"You need this."

The smell of coffee made her uncover her face but he was also holding a huge banana and she cocked an eyebrow at him. "For the love of everything sacred I hope that's not an analogy." she half-closed her eyes.

Klaus stared at his hand. "Hmm… I want to be modest…" he drifted his eyes to her before smiling, it happened so genuinely that he wasn't even smirking, he was just fighting this immense laughter prickling out of him.

Caroline took the banana knowing it was the right boost for energy that she needed. "I've had better." she said while munching the first bite from the fruit.

Klaus gave her the coffee slightly shaking his head. "I was wondering where sassy Caroline was hiding."

She had her coffee falling back to the somber attire that she was wearing today. "She must be somewhere with my bravery because I don't know if I can do this now that the moment is actually here." she lowered her head. "It doesn't feel right."

"Use that." he suggested. "Or the anger that you were harboring before."

Caroline sadly smiled. "I don't hate you Klaus, not more than I hate myself for almost kissing you yesterday."

When she hurriedly tried to get away he clutched her arm and Caroline wheezed because he kept her so close to him that she could feel his warmth burning her skin yet she kept looking straight ahead while he lowered his forehead enough to touch the side of her head.

"When I left England, I arrived to a new country and culture with no money, and without a place to sleep I ended up hiding in a church during the nights, when the priest found out he gave me shelter and food." Klaus spoke only for her to listen.

Caroline faced him slowly, the man was important to him.

"Father Kieran was Camille's uncle." Klaus pulled the pin from the grenade.

She could feel her heart being chipped away with every slow motion that his tongue made across his lips.

"He became the father I didn't know and he died last year with cancer." he carried on with a low voice.

"I'm sorry." Caroline reached out with sincerity.

"Before he died, I promised him that I would take care of Camille." Klaus released the lever and detonated the grenade.

It was epic the amount of effort that she placed behind the movement her lips made to form a smile but she still managed to do it. "You two look good together."

"I never questioned the choice I made that day Caroline…" he leaned over to her.

Caroline knew that the way they were dangerously itching to kiss each other went beyond simple attraction.

"Until now." he dropped in his smooth accent what was the aftermath of a cruel bomb, after a long gaze at her luscious lips he leaned away from her and went inside the Studio.

Caroline pulled the hood over her head and covered herself deeply grunting in frustration, this was not happening to her.  
She was not falling in love with the older English hotty and he didn't just admit that he was attracted to her as well.

"Seriously." she pulled the hood down and straightened her hair enough to look decent.

Yes, that was exactly what was happening and she should have her head checked because she was going to fight for him.  
Well, recording the best presentation demo in history was a start and she strutted inside that Studio gritty to impress him, she also removed her baggy sweater on the way, a skimpy tank top made her look far more appealing and she was going to use every weapon in her arsenal.

The plan was simple enough, she was going to seduce Klaus Mikaelson before her record hit the stores.

* * *

**Soundtrack **

Torn – _Natalie Imbruglia_

All you wanted – _Sounds Under Radio feat. Allison Sudol_

Just a dream – _Nelly_

White flag - _Dido_

Bang Bang _\- Nicki Minaj, Ariana Grande and Jessie J_


	6. Unyielding

"Husband?" Rebekah closed the front door waiting for a reply, she shrugged when all she received back was silence.

She looked up from the sofa where she was dropping all the shopping bags that returned home with her when Caroline rushed into the living room wearing a tiny denim skirt and a blue tank top.

"He went out with Klaus." she informed the owner of the house with a smile.

Rebekah smiled back but noticed how Caroline expected something else. "Is there something I can do for you Caroline?"

"Yes, tell me how I look." Caroline narrowed her eyes terribly serious.

"I like everything but the top." Rebekah honestly gave her opinion.

It was the item Caroline liked less as well and she turned away on her blue pumps heading back to the bedroom.  
The almost desperate feel to it made Rebekah laugh softly and she picked up a bag before going after Caroline, she found her trying a blouse this time but the look wasn't improved at all.

Caroline still tried giving it a sexy vibe but there wasn't much she could do with it, with a big grunt she removed the shirt and tossed it to the bed.

"Try this instead." Rebekah removed a stunning top from inside the bag, it had a big V opening in the front while the back was being held by a single knot.

Caroline stared at the satin piece scared of touching it. "I can't borrow that Rebekah, it still has the price tag and I'm petrified to find out how much it costs."

Rebekah was already removing the tag. "It didn't cost me a penny, stores offer me things all the time." she handed the top over to Caroline. "And I have the right accessory for that as well."

Caroline loudly gulped down taking the top but undeniably it fit like a glove and improved her look so much that she smiled at the size-mirror enchanted.

Rebekah returned to the bedroom with a blue leather jacket in her hand. "Some stylist gave me this ages ago but I never got to wear it because I'm not a big fan of blue."

Caroline's eyes widened when Rebekah placed the jacket on top of her shoulders.

"But blue is definitely your color." Rebekah smiled tucking Caroline's shoulders. "Go on, try it on. I want to see how it looks on you."

Caroline eagerly did it because guilt aside the jacket was too cool to pass it on, she turned beaming to Rebekah who was trying to find a seat on the bed among the worn-out clothes that Caroline owned. "I will pay for the jacket." she told Rebekah.

The other smiled with mischievousness. "I'll propose a deal instead, tell me why you were about to cry on the hallway the night I arrived and I will offer you the jacket."

Caroline clasped her lips, damn. It came with hesitation but she revealed half the truth. "I don't like Camille, she made me feel like a child and patronized me all night."

Rebekah tossed her head back loudly groaning. "I loathe her."

It was so wrong to smile but Caroline still did it. "I don't think she likes you very much either."

"I remember the first time we met." Rebekah crossed her long legs. "I made a guest appearance on a show and my scenes included a steamy sex scene and she decided to shame me during dinner with Nik and Stefan. I was freshly married and I was by no means that comfortable discussing my nipples in front of my brother and husband but she kept lecturing me about my career choices and that I would never be taken serious if I only did sex scenes." Rebekah paused her speech with a hand in the air. "I wanted to throw my water at her face but Stefan kissed me and then told her that our sex tapes were raunchier than that."

Caroline touched her chest. "He's the sweetest guy I know."

"I've loved him from the second Nik introduced us."

"And he really loves you." Caroline turned to the mirror working on a French braid. "It must be nice to be loved back like that."

Rebekah smiled widely, she read Caroline like a script. "It wasn't easy in the beginning, he had crazy schedules and then I started having them but professions aside, we loved each other enough." she appeared again behind Caroline. "Staying with someone out of pity isn't love Caroline and although my brother has the tendency to never do the right thing, the one time he chose to do it, it's the most wrong action ever."

"I don't…" Caroline shook her head an inch. "Like him that way…" she whispered.

"I love with all my heart while Nik wrapped his in ice and hardened his eyes to any showing of love. This undisputed capacity that he has to keep a fortification between him and everyone else comes from all the harm my father caused him but during these last two days I've noticed how he always looks at you when you're not watching."

Caroline looked intently at Rebekah through the reflecting object in front of her.  
Rebekah winked at her before walking away and Caroline struggled with her braid as much as she struggled with her racing heart.

* * *

"Wife?" Stefan called out trying to count all the bags that were left on the sofa.

"Hello." Rebekah showed up in all of her joy and targeted his mouth at once.

The long kiss annoyed Klaus who removed himself from the scene knowing he was being ignored on purpose so he waited for Caroline by the elevator.

"Good morning!" she greeted him with a giant smile.

"Good… morning…" Klaus squinted not particularly sharing her extreme glee.

And also because like it happened for the last couple of days, Caroline was wearing something audacious and chose to stand really really close to him inside the elevator and by close he meant that he had to keep his eyes in front of him all the time or he would land them right on top of her generous cleavage.

"Do we have many things planned for today?" she cheerfully asked him.

"Not more than the usual." he counted the numbers going down on the small square in front of him.

"Do you like my new jacket? Your sister gave it to me."

"It's eye-catching." Klaus said without moving his eyes at all.

"You aren't looking…" she sounded glower.

He steered his eyes just a tiny bit and found Caroline holding her jacket apart so that her bust gloriously provoked him.

"You like?" her voice was playful but touching on that flirt that she had been dropping around him lately.

Ever since he admitted that he wasn't indifferent to her that Caroline's outfits became impertinent like her attitude and it would be a big fat lie if he said that none of it messed with him.

"Paul is waiting for us." Klaus was ecstatic that the elevator ride was short and was the first to step out of the elevator deeply betraying his gentleman ways.

Caroline grinned with a really good feeling about today, there was nothing but joy when she found a taxi waiting to take them to the scheduled recording session.

She gracefully took her seat in the car but as soon as Klaus came inside she glided towards him and made the journey practically glued to him. "I practiced a lot and I know the lyrics by heart now." she cutely nodded at Klaus.

"I expected no less." he smiled knowing she was trying to impress him.

She kept her eyes on him, thoroughly inspecting every line and curve on his face, she sighed loudly like someone in a gallery admiring art. "I'm going to buy you a present with the money we are getting from the Disney song."

"I'm slightly fearful to ask what sort of a present." he made sure his eyes weren't upon hers for long.

"A car…" she frowned. "Or a bike." she jolted in her seat. "Do you know how to ride a motorcycle?"

He chuckled unable to keep up with Caroline's track of thought. "I do."

She bit her lip processing the image of holding on to him tightly while he drove a big Harley.

"But I prefer horses." he quietly said gazing outside.

"It's funny but when I look at you… I don't picture someone preferring the country to the busy city. You look like someone who really favors the noise and all the hassle of a crowded metropolis."

He was looking down when he smiled candidly. "I was born and raised in rural England along with three siblings."

"I read somewhere that you own this giant ranch or farm or something…" she recalled every word she read but she wanted to sound vague.

"It's still the same house I grew up in, I just acquired the property around it and gave it to my brother Elijah to care for it."

Caroline was surprised. "You ran away from home so you weren't happy there… why would you buy the house later?"

As his tongue crossed his lips, he tried to smile but it was a strange mix of pain and disenchantment that he rarely let out publicly. "I was never good enough for my father, I was always the weaker, the slowest and dimmest according to him and I spent 15 years seeking for approval. The day he pinned me to the floor with a sword through my shoulder was the day I stopped trying to prove myself to him."

"Your pigheaded attitude comes from there?" she simply asked him.

"I always liked how unyielding sounded like." he turned his head to look at her.

She was resting on her side, her head latent against her hand and the elbow on top of the seat. "Unyielding…" she slowly spelled the word. "I like that a lot, I think I just found my favorite word." she smiled elated.

"When the world tells us that we can't do something…"

Her smile reached her big expressive eyes. "We like to prove them wrong."

Their eyes carried on with a conversation that was being kept on hold for now, they were stuck in traffic and although their driver was exasperating and cursing, Klaus and Caroline were enjoying the slow burn.

"Do you have a scar?" she suddenly asked.

From a brief squint he jumped into a laugh and refused to answer her, immediately Caroline tapped her way around her forehead finding the right entrance to the small fault in her scalp.

"I was six and very convinced that I was Wonder Woman when I jumped from the roof of my house." she exposed a scar that was always carefully hidden among her blonde locks.

Klaus' laughter grew but simply because he found her adorable. "Visibly cracking your skull open was a sign that you weren't."

"I didn't learn my lesson, I still dive in head first and reason later." she shrugged, another conversation started between their eyes but Caroline cunningly smiled before wiggling her eyebrows at him. "Are you going to show me yours? I just showed you mine."

Klaus laughed. "I have no intention of getting undressed inside of a taxicab to satisfy your curiosity."

Caroline giggled poking his left shoulder. "Is it this one?" He didn't roll his eyes but she could see the urge rising up. "Oh, it's the other one." she said with a suspicious tone.

As soon as she did so Klaus barely had time to stop her as she tried to lower the collar of his Henley.

"I just want to see it." she started laughing when he looked at her stunned by her bold move.

"I'm not showing you anything Caroline." he tried so hard to sound strict but a laugh was cracking its way out of him either way.

She was already roaring, entertained with the struggle to see his naked chest, shifting closer to him in a monumental fight with his hands that kept catching hers just as she was about to win.  
Her laughter was just like her, bubbly and carefree and he was in the end unsuccessful as he grabbed her right hand to stop her and Caroline's left hand was already lowering his collar.

Then everything altered inside the cab, her laughter faded as slowly as she pushed the fabric down and spotted a tattoo.  
The beauty of it was of course immense and she expected it from a man with his taste but among a flock of birds and before it reached a feather on his arm, she found it.

A deep scar that carved him into the man he was today.

Caroline looked up from the mark she was slowly outlining with her finger and contrary to what he expected, she smiled.  
There were no big speeches or sad poignant tears jolting away from her eyes, just this one perfect smile.

He kept her hand inside of his and gently had his thumb brushing the back of her hand, the way they looked at each other changed for that one moment but nothing truly came out of it because the man in the front seat started spewing curses and strange words that Caroline didn't understand.  
She looked away from Klaus to the foreign man and that was enough for him to gain his command back.

"We can walk the rest of the way, the building is just a few minutes away from here." he said.

Caroline awkwardly realized she was almost sitting on his lap and that he wasn't holding her hand anymore. "Sure." she told the man already paying the driver and left the cab.

Once outside they kept a safe distance that she didn't force otherwise.

"I can't believe I'm actually going to step inside of the Brill." Caroline joined her hands like she was about to clap. "This is exciting."

Perhaps still latching on to the moment inside the car, Klaus only smiled and chose not to speak.  
She wasn't happy with that but she liked brooding Klaus as well so her next words only came once they crossed the front door of the infamous building.

He was talking to the receptionist while Caroline was staring at the ceiling while spinning around.

"Wow..." she shook her head dizzy after a few minutes and contemplated on all the other details ornamenting the big construction.

"Caroline!"

A young voice echoed loudly and Caroline looked behind wondering who it was.

"Davina." she smiled surprised to find the girl here.

The other singer ran to Caroline for a hug with beaming happiness bursting out of her. "I was waiting for you."

"You were?" Caroline was a tiny puzzled.

"Enzo called the producers of Frozen and begged them for another audition." Davina lowered her chin a bit in guilt. "I did everything right this time and they chose me for the duet."

"That means you are going to sing with me." Caroline gasped happy that the girl got a second chance.

"They hadn't chosen anyone after you, they were so awestruck that they were having a hard time finding the right match for your talent." Enzo arrived near the girls with the compliment and a strange growling towards the other man. "Klaus…" he nodded once.

The other didn't bother and concentrated only on Caroline. "They are waiting for you."

"Ok." she answered happy and went away, side by side with Davina who was now sharing all details about her recent adventurous audition.

The girls were taken to the studio where they would be recording the movie song while the two managers waited outside.  
Klaus found his everlasting refuge in his phone while Enzo did nothing but lean against a wall and cross his arms, he kept track of the few people going in and out of the room but he could hear the loud laughter coming from the girls, being Caroline's the loudest.

"She's like a perky angel…" Enzo moved his head to look at Klaus. "Your client, Caroline." he added.

It was with no need because Klaus knew he would bring her up sooner or later, he lifted his eyes from the phone with bother. "Do you have a valid cause to steal air from the space we are currently sharing? Talking is a waste."

"I'm always hopeful that you will drop dead." Enzo forcefully smiled.

Klaus fought with the internet connection and that forced him to turn to the window, he moved his phone a bit higher but pressed his lips upset with the lack of service.

"These are old walls… probably as old as you." Enzo smirked. "That means you can't get a decent connection in here."

Klaus lowered his phone and smiled at Enzo so unnaturally that it hurt to watch. "I'm going to wait outside, where they have cameras and security to stop me from going on a murder binge."

"Being so aggressive comes from your genuine dislike towards my existence or you just don't like me?" Enzo spewed.

"I don't like what you represent." Klaus postponed his storming exit.

"The industry changed Klaus, it's not about knowing the right people in the right places anymore, it's about having the right internet coverage and knowing exactly what people want to hear and what they want to see when their favorite singer shows up on a flat screen."

"It's the same Billboard list that was used when I launched my first band straight to number one, the same where Davina flopped barely making it to number 50."

Enzo pulled away from the wall but kept his arms crossed. "Caroline is better than Davina, I know that." he scolded Klaus. "I knew that from the second I heard her sing back at Marcel's studio but she needs to adapt fast to the new demands in the industry or she won't even make it to 50."

"I'll send you an Instagram picture when her name reaches number one on the charts." Klaus delectably had the last word.

Enzo narrowed his eyes in fury, he hated the know-it-all attitude that Klaus oozed but he might just hate even more how he was always a step ahead from everyone in the business.

* * *

"Mark called again…" Bonnie's secretary said after they covered everything on her list. "He is impatient and being rude again."

"He almost ran over a Paparazzi and he's being sued." Bonnie showed Nina the notification that arrived with the mail in the morning.

"I'm not really surprised…" Nina was honest. "The man has no manners at all and he is one step away from crazy."

"I think we need Mocha to cheer us up a bit." Bonnie went around her desk to get some money.

"But I'm going down to the street, we need some real coffee." Nina left without closing the door, she intended to be back soon with two big cups.

Bonnie used the time to read the rest of her mail and she was standing by the side of her desk when a soft knock interrupted her work.

"I love the really classy look but I admit that I miss the denim overall." Kol smiled by the door.

Inwardly she was grinning because it was still her favorite thing to wear when she was home but outside she remained unaffected. "I have to be taken serious in my profession."

"You became too serious." he informed while stepping inside the office.

Bonnie's eyes were pulled to him like she was obliged to watch every step he calmly took nearing her. "One of us had to grow up."

He ignored the observation, he was intrigued by the big desk and once close to it Kol grabbed the edge trying it for stability. "Looks strong and massive, probably it won't break under our weight." he smirked looking at her.

There was no use being mad at Kol, he would never change and that was part of the attraction, there was no way around it, so she dropped the letters and softly spoke. "You can't do this Kol, you can't just come back and drop sexy innuendos about the things we did in the past like we are still an actual couple. Our marriage ended and with it our memories together."

"False." he opened his arms correcting himself at once. "I object to that."

"You hated being married, you told me that the responsibility was suffocating you and that you felt trapped." her voice was cracking somewhere between pain and anger.

"And I didn't stop you when you filed for divorce but I will stop you from erasing our history."

Bonnie shook her head defeated. "That's why you won't let me sell the house in the Hamptons."

Determinedly he stood in front of her like he was ready to cup her face at any second. "First day at Cambridge I sat next to this American beauty with green eyes and I asked her about her dream…"

Bonnie interrupted him with disdain. "It was _your _first day at college although we were on our third week of class and you showed up after some party, so hangover that you took Constitutional Law thinking that you were attending Economics_."_

"And you called me a frivolous Brit with money because my course was Land Economy opposed to your pompous Law major." he countered amused.

She clutched her lips sealed but damn it, the smile still made it through.

It was all it took for Kol to finally reach for her face and he smiled elated. "I picked the seat next to the prettiest girl in the auditorium and I'm still looking for that empty seat next to you every time I walk inside of a room."

"Did you practice that a lot?" she didn't push him away at all, she gazed at him instead.

"It's slightly showing how much, however…" he lowered his voice. "When I asked you that day what was the point of college you answered with sparkling emerald eyes that you wanted to be a famous lawyer with an office in New York and a house in the Hamptons. I may have drifted along the way but I haven't forgotten what makes us. And I miss it Bonnie, more than anything in this world, I miss us."

"I don't." she tried her best to be short and dry.

She knew she was successful when he only brushed her cheeks once before letting her go.

"I'm not selling my share of the house."

"I don't care anymore." she kept her words to the minimal.

He smiled with wretchedness. "Am I to believe you?"

"You can have the house all to yourself which means that I'm giving up the only thing that still connects us, so you tell me…" she whispered.

Kol turned away without answering her and she closed her eyes refusing to watch him leave.

* * *

Enzo smiled at Caroline when their eyes met as she was leaving the studio, although she quickly looked for the other man with an accent he was sadly not in the hallway.

"He's waiting for you outside." Enzo was kind enough to inform her.

"I'm done with my part of the duet but they want to go over Davina's parts again so she will be in there for a while." Caroline said already on her way out.

"That had to be hard." Enzo said loudly, when she turned around he smiled. "It seems like it takes a great deal of effort to speak to me."

"I try to avoid talking to guys who picture me naked all the time." she acidly told him.

Enzo gasped lifting his hands in the air. "I find you hot, by all means hang me because of it."

Caroline's expression was a clear image of how much she was about to vomit. "Poor Davina... I feel sorry that she has to work with you every day."

It was his turn to cringe. "She could be my daughter, that's revolting."

"So she's not under your creepy radar. It's not as bad as I thought."

Enzo neared her with an easy smile. "It's obvious gorgeous that we started off in shaky waves and it's not a secret that I am attracted to you but that's also the reason I have the kid while Klaus has you. I would under no circumstances be able to work unbiased and focused when you are wearing _that_." his eyes wandered through her sexy outfit.

"Not everyone is like you." she replied quickly but by God, how she wished that was a lie.

"I'm actually a very interesting and appealing lad once you get to know me, it also works better over dinner and some expensive wine."

Caroline brought her eyebrows together in astonishment. "Are you seriously asking me out on a date?"

He took a card from his pocket and handed it to her. "I'm sure by now you've exchanged numbers with Davina but I would like to be the one to call you, unless you want to do it."

"I am not going anywhere alone with you." she pulled her head back with flair. "I would have to call the police with your description first and then take Klaus along as a bodyguard."

Enzo laughed loudly. "Usually I don't mind the company but I think that you deserve all my attention."

"I'm going away because this is becoming crass."

This time he didn't actually stop her, he was just leaving a few words for her to ponder about. "I know that I could change your perception of me if I was given that chance and under the right circumstances we would eventually become friends with benefits."

She made a loud gagging noise down the hallway.

* * *

"Hey Care." Jesse interrupted his easy jam with Tyler when he spotted the blonde arriving.

She waved at them happily and then broke into a big laugh because they pointed at their chests and to a tag they scribbled while waiting for her.

Matt particularly liked his because it had mini football balls glued to the paper. "I had a lot of time on my hands…" he explained why his card was so artistic.

"I love it." Caroline poked the card but further started feeling his massive chest. "Wow Matt… you really take exercise serious."

Ineptly he smiled. "I like working out."

Caroline kept her thorough inspection of his chest and muscles and when she reached his abs Caroline wanted to know if Klaus was paying attention.  
Painfully she was presented with total indifference as he chose to write a huge message on his phone instead of considering her behavior menacing, he was onto the baiting jealousy hints that were left by Caroline but her naive easy approach to the band members was seen by Klaus as cute rather than anything else.

"I work out a lot as well." Jeremy sat next to Matt eager to know if he was next in line for inspection.

"You are like the baby brother of a best friend I don' have." she warned him fiercely with a denial look.

He sulked protesting the different treatment he was receiving but the rest of the guys laughed about it.

"My muscles don't come from artificial pumping." Tyler joined them and started banging Matt's shoulder with his drum sticks. "It's all from drumming."

"Nothing on this body is artificial Ty and jealousy is a petty feeling." Matt leaned over the mixing table.

There was a soft chuckle from Klaus that irritated Caroline, she was trying so hard to be over friendly with the new guys and he was just finding it all humorous.

She gave him one good glare that only made him grin. "You are free to discuss all the pivotal topics being thrown into this conversation later on when you all go over to the Pub." he placated her tantrum by at least acknowledging that she was working hard to make a dent on his hard shell. "But for now some work would be good to witness."

She resigned and agreed with him. "Are we working on _Love Song_ today?"

The band shared a complicity look before Matt pressed a button, when the first cords filled the studio Caroline frowned not sure what was happening, until her clear beautiful voice was heard.  
She gasped covering her mouth shocked and incredibly nervous as the song carried on filling the air, the guys all beamed and moved their heads along with the music.

"I present you all with the first finished song of Caroline Forbes." Matt had a giant smile.

"And it's kickass." Jesse assured her.

Caroline squealed, she dropped her head back and made this enormous excited sound, then she jumped and later on danced to her song.  
_Her song_.

Now that was truly incredible to say and she loved how she sounded on record but there was one opinion she craved to know above all others and she expectantly looked at Klaus.

His smile was warm and so was his subtle nod. "You sound remarkable." It was as if he was purely saying out loud what he always knew in his heart.

Caroline clapped with a lot of loud incoherent noises before she jumped again. "I have a song!" she shouted happy that Matt was playing it again and then totally in a spur she grabbed Klaus' shoulders. "We have a single."

He wasn't given an opening to speak and let alone react because Caroline threw her arms around his neck so she could hug him happy.  
It only lasted a few seconds but he wasn't sure how to deal with the situation and Caroline's glee was temporarily replaced by something else.

She was in his arms, awfully close to him and to his scent and she moved her cheek just enough to feel his stubble against her skin.  
Truthfully she would stay like that for the longest time but remembering that they weren't alone she moved away from him, her bubbly ways didn't raise suspicion and she easily smiled at Klaus hiding how much she was tingling over the small immediacy.

"I think we should celebrate." Tyler suggested.

"Yes, let's all go have a drink." Caroline wanted to rejoice.

The boys all stood up, they didn't need a written invitation for that one.

"You are going with us, right?" she looked at Klaus scared that he was going to say no.

"You and the band created this, so you should be celebrating with them." Klaus was decisive. "The artists party alone."

She smiled at the guys as they left her alone with Klaus but she was serious when she spoke to him. "None of this would be possible if it wasn't for you."

"I've told you already sweetheart that my place rests is in the backstage."

"Klaus…" she began to protest but he was set on cutting her short.

"I would advise that you don't overdo with the drinking but a celebration is in order so I'm shutting my eyes to what happens tonight."

Caroline crossed her arms, closed her face and assumed a warrior stance. "I would still be singing to the usual crowd of day-drinkers back in my hometown if it wasn't for you, so you are going with us and I am buying you a drink."

He lowered his chin keeping his eyes on her.  
She widened her eyes refusing to accept a no.

* * *

"Cute blonde on the way from the bathroom." Tyler whispered to the others as he arrived with the beers.

"You mean the one flirting with me?" Matt grabbed his beer returning the flirt.

Tyler dropped back on his seat with a huff. "Dude… do you have to steal every girl I like?"

"I thought that all the girls preferred the drummers." Caroline cleaned the mouth of the bottle a few times before she had a drink from it.

"It's a myth." Jeremy joked.

"They all fall for Matt's blue eyes." Tyler glared at Matt who left the table to find a place at the bar.

"He's going in." Jeremy turned amused to see how things would unfold.

There were a few cute exchanges of stares and then they were involved in a close talk that made Tyler grunt.

"And… he got her." Tyler rolled his eyes when they started exchanging phone numbers.

"Hi…" Jesse suddenly said to another girl he had been flirting with across the room.

Caroline felt like a spare when the girl leaned against her chair to speak to Jesse and smoothly left the guys at the table, mostly because Tyler was too funny making all the glare death menaces while Jeremy pouted bored.  
But her night wasn't going well either, Klaus was only with them for a few minutes before he got a call that he took outside, she caught Camille's number on the screen so she was aware why he was taking so long to return to them.

She found Klaus in the street but he wasn't on his phone, he was sitting against the hood of a car and looking without expression to the end of the street.

"I will give you the rest of this bottle if you share the deep thoughts that you are juggling right now." Caroline sat next to him and handed him her beer.

"The usual…" he accepted the bottle with a smile. "Take over the world, become a ruler and take no prisoners."

Caroline laughed softly while running the zipper of her jacket up and down. "So that's why you have me upfront in the battlefield."

"It's a place reserved for my finest soldier." he rested the empty bottle next to him on the hood.

"It's a really good song isn't it?" she softly asked him with hope shining in her blue eyes.

"One to leave me proud." he assured her.

Caroline missed wearing her hair down today because it would have hid her face perfectly, that way he wouldn't see the blush that was creeping in.

"It's going to be your first single and I'm going to set a meeting with someone I know at EMI next week, it's where I started working when I first arrived to New York and I still have good contacts down in Madison Avenue."

Caroline's eyes shifted from affected to nervous. "But that's the only song we have ready Klaus."

"It's the right song to introduce you. We can add the ballads and the other songs later on but this one… it's who you are Caroline. A fighter…" he licked his lips shifting a bit to better face her. "Beautiful..."

"I only feel like that when you are looking at me." she confessed.

"It's how I see you." he moved his hand wanting to reach out and stroke her cheek. "And how I want the rest of the world to see you."

"I trust you." There was not a shred of insecurity in her voice whatsoever.

His reasoning was lost, he had no business moving his hand like that but he grazed her cheek with the tip of his fingertips and it didn't help that she closed her eyes reacting to it so much. "I don't trust myself when I'm alone with you love." he voiced the troubling doubts inside of him.

Those eyes of hers that held so much life opened up to look at him and she leaned her head towards his touch.  
The street was calm and the music inside the Pub only hit them whenever someone left the bar and that wasn't often which granted them this sort of time alone that was hitting dangerous on all levels.

"The point of tonight was to have a drink together but inside the bar." she tried to keep her steady breath going.

"It wasn't to get me affected by your complicity with the band then?"

Her cheek began to scorch beneath his palm but she still pulled through a wicked smile. "Actually what I really wanted was to sneak a dance with you."

He quietly sighed and instead of inching her closer to him, he was the one moving.  
Caroline gulped down sure that he was going to kiss her but Klaus ruthlessly stopped at the last crucial second.

"What are you doing Caroline?" he was so serious that his words resonated a bit higher than a simple whisper.

"Trying to seduce you..." she murmured scratching her lower lip with her teeth, she wanted to nibble on his lips instead.

He gritted his teeth forcing a gush of air to expel from his wonderful mouth because his phone started ringing again and he knew exactly who was interrupting them.  
So did Caroline and in that moment everything dawned on her, she was one fraction away from kissing a man engaged to another woman.

"I have the biggest crush on you." she openly told him. "The kind that makes me feel lightened up just thinking of you but you were right... we can't do this."

He caressed her face one more time before taking his hand away with a painful expression.

"I got so wrapped up in what I'm feeling because I never felt this way about anyone but I'm not the type of girl who steals a guy from another girl already choosing a wedding gown. She was here first..." Caroline sadly smiled and slid down from the hood.

She pushed her hands inside the pockets of her jacket and had a deep stabilizing breath, this wasn't her, she wasn't ready to become a full-on home wrecker.  
No matter how much she was falling hard and heavy for Klaus, she couldn't do this, she had already taken this too far and it was time to put an end to it.

"I'm just a kid crushing on the hot older guy with an accent." she said as if hoping that repeating it enough would fade her real feelings away.

"You sound mature enough to me Caroline." he stood up.

Face to face Caroline found strength to smile naturally at him. "I promise I will behave from now on and I won't get in the middle of you and the future Mrs. Mikaelson."

"I think we should end this with a dance, it's what you came here for and no one will blame us for being caught up in the moment."

Caroline looked at his hand waiting for hers and slowly left the safety of her pocket to enjoy the way it gently got lost inside of his big warm hand as he closed it around hers.  
Klaus pulled her closer to him softly, his hand started off by only brushing her back, then as she puzzled her body with his, Klaus lowered his hand from the middle of her back to her waist line with a strong feeling of her body.

His shoulder became a nest for her hand and Caroline started moving with him expecting the dance to remain casual, not to have him press her so close that she was entirely outlining his burly body with hers.  
Then he did the unthinkable, he rested his scruffy cheek against hers and closed his eyes while having a deep breath.

It hit Caroline then, the dance wasn't for her.  
It was his own goodbye gift, a farewell to something that didn't even start because like she said before, she wasn't here before Camille and now he was stuck with doing the right thing instead of cracking his shell open and letting Caroline fill his life with joy and light.

She danced with him silently while they basked in the feel of an impossible love.

* * *

Kol had a magnificent view from the hotel but he stepped away from the window uninterested in anything that didn't come in the shape of a bottle tonight, he already had two big drinks and he picked up the Scotch ready to end the bottle before the clock took another turn.  
He was leaving the glass full when someone gently tapped on his door with a couple of knocks, knowing it wasn't room service he suspected one of his siblings.

Finding Bonnie at his doorstep was a complete surprise and he held on to the door expecting the worst.

"I lied today." Bonnie quietly said.

She sounded conflicted and he knew she had been crying. "About what darling?" he was still preparing himself.

"Every day when I wake up… the thing I miss the most is the way I always woke up with my back against your chest while you held me close and how you always hid your face in the crook of my neck and kissed me in the morning…" she shrugged letting go. "I miss you too."

Kol pushed the door open so she could come inside, when she stopped close to him Kol cradled her face with his hands and kissed her lips slowly.

Bonnie kissed him back wondering how it was possible that despite everything they still kissed the same way.  
She still tilted her head that exact way and parted her lips for him, he still stroked her face with a hand while the other drifted to her waist bringing her closer to him and she still caressed his neck in love with him.

* * *

Camille couldn't sleep, she kept tossing in bed and only making a cold bed feel frosty.  
It was a surprise that he even came to the hotel at all but she failed to see the point of it when he laid by her side without a word, not to mention his complete lack of interest in her body after an entire day away.

They weren't the most passionate couple when it came to their physical relationship but nevertheless she knew he was satisfied and that sex wasn't that important when they had such a good friendship.  
She told him about everything all the time and he took care of all her bills and affairs so that she never had to worry about anything.

They had a solid and good relationship and she couldn't imagine her life without him anymore.  
Along with her dead uncle he was the one constant in her life and she depended on him to have the stability she needed to focus on her career as she was certain he needed her reliable side to balance out the consequences of working with a bunch of crazy artists that she saw as nothing but spoiled brats.

All of them.  
Camille turned on her side clutching her pillow, the new blonde in Klaus' life was again popping to her mind.

Caroline was defiantly a beautiful girl and she was smarter than she let out to other people, one long talk was enough to show Camille that the other hid her intelligence behind the carefree attitude.  
But she wasn't worried, no.

Camille faced the ceiling again, she was important to Klaus, he was going to marry her and they would be happy because that's what they planned.  
That was the plan...

Tired of carrying on with an inner monologue she got out of bed and found him in what was his most appealing look.  
Klaus was sitting on a chair shirtless and instigating the flames inside the mantel to have a complex silent talk with him.

With love in her touch she glided her hand across his arm but made sure to keep her caress away from the hurtful memory of his past.  
It wasn't good for him to keep remembering how his father almost killed him that day so she never touched the subject nor his scar.

"It's really late and you barely had any sleep." However she always made sure to let him know how much she loved him by touching him.

He trapped her hand in his when she was going to outline his face, it wasn't a rude move but she still felt like he was upset that she was touching him.

"Do you have any scars Camille?"

She laughed with softness but still showing how much she found him funny. "We all do Nik." he looked truly enthralled to know more so she sat on the arm of the chair erasing the silly laughter. "Do you need to talk about something Nik? I can help you with a few steps to deal with past memories…"

But that's not what he wanted at all. "No." he didn't let her go far, she was missing the point anyway. "I'm going to shower, I have an eventful day ahead…"

"I sense that you are upset." she went after him. "We should talk about this Nik."

Klaus picked up his Henley and his keys. "I'm going to Stefan's instead, I don't have any fresh clothes in here." he only looked back once at her.

"Talk to me." she begged him because she touched from where she was how troubled he was.

"What's the point Camille? I don't know you despite all the talking you do." he snapped, finally breaking into a loud voice.

Camille braced herself for the shock but Klaus slamming the door as he left made her feel colder than she did when she was in bed.

* * *

It was only half past six so the lights on left him taken aback, then as he pushed the door of the studio the noise stunned him entirely.

"Hey…" Tyler sleepily said behind silver shades and holding a huge mug of coffee.

Klaus dropped his keys on the table and removed the top from his cup of coffee. "I thought I would be the awakening party."

Tyler pointed inside the booth where Caroline was with Jeremy at the piano. "She called us at 5Am saying that she needed to come to the Studio to work on something."

Klaus slid a button up on the mixing table and raised the volume coming from inside the booth.

"Dude… I know that it's dawn and it's sad that she already knows that Jeremy and I are the only ones without company but if she calls me every day at 5 to sing like that…" Tyler looked at Klaus with a grin. "I'm going to answer every time."

"Lockwood... don't call me dude." Klaus warned him.

"She said that she couldn't sleep and that she spent all night writing." Tyler half-ignored him.

_"Does anybody know  
How to hold my heart  
How to hold my heart?  
'Cause I don't wanna let go  
Let go, let go too soon_

_I want to tell you so  
Before the sun goes dark  
How to hold my heart..."  
_  
Caroline's flawless voice was filled with emotion, the words she scribbled over night now had a face and a powerful name behind them and she was literally singing from her heart, she was visibly maturing by leaps and bounds and her latest lyrics showed Klaus exactly that.  
He attentively listened to what she was saying and watched her with a growing smile, the baggy hoody was back and she was wearing a pair of old Jeans with ballerina shoes yet Klaus found her majestic in all of her natural grace as the first sunlight started peeking inside the Studio and hitting her golden curls.

"Excuse me…" a young boy asked by the door holding a big roses' bouquet.

Klaus looked at the voice annoyed with the disturbance.

"I'm looking for a…" the boy read the little card. "Caroline Forbes."

Klaus went to the boy plucking the card from his hand. "_From Enzo_." he read out loud with a growl over the name.

"Are you Caroline Forbes?" The kid asked neutrally, everything was possible in New York City.

Klaus took the flowers with a sassy smile. "I knew I left him with an everlasting impression."

The kid simply turned away, it was way too early for this.

Tyler's eyebrow went up when Klaus shoved the flowers inside the bin and crumbled the card, he kept his eyes on Klaus as the other pushed the bin under the table and sat placing his boots on top of the crime scene.

"Are you going to be a problem?" Klaus had his coffee nonchalant.

"You look like someone who could really hurt me, so no…" Tyler mumbled. "… Mr. Dude."

Klaus smirked. "Keep that in mind."

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

All about that bass - _Meghan Trainor_

In your arms - _Nico &amp; Vinz_

You and I – _Lady Gaga_

Let me be - _Monica Ferraz_

Hold my heart – _Sara Bareilles _


	7. The city that never sleeps

"_If I should stay,  
I would only be in your way…"_

Stefan looked at Klaus wondering if the other was also hearing the loud music coming from inside of his house, he opened the front door to encounter Caroline and Rebekah screaming at the TV while Whitney Houston's voice filled the house.

"No Rachel!" Rebekah sniffled curled up in the sofa.

"You have to stay with her Frank…" Caroline begged from the other side of the sofa.

"So the big plans that you two had for tonight was…" Stefan picked up the DVD. "Movie night with Kevin Costner?"

"The Bodyguard is the best film ever made." Rebekah pulled another sniffle.

Stefan pressed the DVD against his chest. "You've only seen it a hundred times or so."

Rebekah cutely looked at him. "This was our wedding song."

"You organized the entire event, the only thing that Stefan was allowed to do was show up at the wedding." Klaus sharply said with a teasing smile from the armchair.

There was a pillow flying in his direction as soon as Rebekah reacted. "I don't really care for what you all think. Caroline and I had a wonderful girls' night with Kevin and the wonderful Whitney."

Caroline agreed with a smile but her eyes were steering to Klaus and she enjoyed that he was smiling at her.  
Astute to the mood Stefan decided to make a contribution and swiftly scooped Rebekah up from the sofa into his arms.

"Oh, are you going to be my bodyguard tonight?" Rebekah secured her arms around his neck.

"I will be anything that you want me to be tonight wife." he smiled hugely at her.

Rebekah purred before kissing him passionately and Klaus and Caroline broke into a small chuckle when Stefan left with a beaming Rebekah whose cheeky giggles were audible all the way from the hallway to the living room.  
When those were replaced with a few thuds and other happy sounds, it became incredibly uncomfortable for Klaus and Caroline to stay in the room unaffected by it, obviously the enamored couple forgot to close the door of their bedroom.

A distinct loud moan from Rebekah energized Caroline to move and she jumped from the sofa. "I'm going for a walk."

"I'll join you." Klaus reached the front door before she did.

They shared this distinctive sigh of relief when they looked at each other already on the hall.

"They are not used to having guests around." Klaus guessed.

"It's less awkward if you remember that she's actually here in person and not on the computer doing all those sounds." Caroline's memory was still fresh with the Skype talks she overheard from Stefan.

"She's my baby sister…" Klaus half-closed his eyes at Caroline. "I don't want to imagine her doing sex noises." he grimaced. "Or sex at all."

She gave him this sweet smile while she trapped her scarf under her new coat. "Let's have some food, that always helps to push invasive thoughts away."

"You're hungry, aren't you?" he smirked by the elevator.

"Your sister ate most of the popcorn." she sulked removing a woolen hat from one of her pockets.

The biggest grin took over him. "I just came from outside and it's not snowing yet."

"The nights in the New York are very cold for me." she buried the hat enough to cover her ears, leaving the wall of cascade curls fall over the black coat freely. "And I can't afford to be ill, I have to protect my voice." she eyed him fiercely. "Or else my manager gets really angry at me and starts yelling."

He kept waiting for her to come up with gloves as well while the elevator ride lasted but instead Caroline hid her hands inside the pockets of her coat warming them. "I'm proud that you listened to everything I told you so far."

"I've developed this warm affection for that vein in your neck that pops out every time you get furious, I care for it." she teased him with a smile and a cock of her eyebrow.

"I'm deeply touched." Klaus found her extremely adorable under the layer of winter clothes.

"So Rebekah gave me a bunch of clothes that were given to her by some fancy stores and that she never wore." she was excited and wanted to share that with him.

"Soon that will happen to you as well." he assured her absolutely convinced of it.

"Do you get gifts like that as well?"

"I'm not famous and I enjoy buying my own clothes." he couldn't stand the idea of someone else doing it for him.

"You should mix a little more color into it." she fearlessly said.

Klaus waited for her to leave the elevator before him. "I've perfected my appearance sweetheart."

"Don't be so touchy…" she constricted her eyebrows. "I love the obscurity of it all but I bet that red looks amazing on you." she headed for the exit of the building confident in her good taste.

"Hmm… the color of blood? That's an odd choice coming from you love."

Caroline faced him once outside the building. "You need a little color in your life Klaus, everything is so dark and heavy around you all the time." she made this hunch move with her body and deepened her voice. "Like you are this monster who sucks out life out of things by being so serious all the time."

He had a few seconds of intense introspection before he quietly spoke. "I'm a fun person."

Caroline resembled a little child when she crossed her arms in disagreement. "I bet that you have a mental list right now with all the expensive restaurants that exist in New York with a lot of Michelin stars and whatnot…"

"One in particular that I like." he grumbled.

"We are in the Big Apple Klaus!" she parted her arms vehemently. "Everything about this city is magical and we've been here forever and I've visited all these places alone, while all you do is work, work, work."

A woman walking by eyed them just like she was witnessing a couple fighting and Klaus wasn't indifferent to it. "You are here to work as well." he reminded her.

"And I haven't disappointed you yet, have I?" she only demanded justice.

He agreed with a inner grumble this time.

"You are so focused most of the time that you miss all these really great little things happening around you and it's not only frustrating but also saddening." Her entire body cave in with sadness.

It was so strange for him to see someone emanating such a feeling towards him that Klaus felt instantly edgy about it. "That deviates from the truth."

Roguishly Caroline began to smile. "Prove it then, that you are capable of having fun without disguising it all with money and fancy high-tech stuff that you use as a safeguard against everyone that isn't you."

Klaus shook his head with a squint, utterly lost to her reasoning. "I wish you would make sense Caroline, now more than ever."

"You fabricated this entire image and you stick to it no matter what. So you had a bad childhood, boo hoo, join the other million kids who had very little reason to smile." she snapped although she was trying to keep it together. "I know that it's hard but sometimes you let your guard down and I see this wonderful smile and I know that it comes from a good place where simple things make you happy, I just wish we got to see _this_ Klaus more often."

He ran a hand across his face. "You are beginning to roam with words out of control."

"Maybe I do talk too much but has it crossed your mind that I do it because you listen?" she asked him.

Klaus eagerly looked for words to answer her. "Are you certain that I don't only pretend to listen?"

"You listen."

"That's a simple answer."

"It was a simple question." she smiled taking a 5 dollar bill from her pocket. "This is all I have on me and we will have fun tonight spending only this."

"That's preposterous." he laughed at how silly she sounded.

"It's easy to buy everything isn't it? To reach for one of the million credit cards that you have and buy emotions instead of genuinely experiencing them."

"Money comes with advantages." he confessed.

"Forget about those, I have a real challenge for you." Caroline stretched the bill in her hands. "Your strong suit is the ability to plan everything to the last detail so… form a plan for us to have fun tonight with a budget of 5 dollars."

He was listing mentally a few options when he took the bill from her hands. "You enjoy making my life far from easy."

She cutely smiled while bringing her shoulders together. "Are you giving up so fast?"

"And award you with teasing ammunition for later? Unlikely, sweetheart."

She instantly knew he already had a plan. "Where are we going?"

Klaus smiled nostalgic. "Back to my past."

Now she was confused and looked at him doubtful while Klaus determinedly took her hand and set his plan on motion.

* * *

"There you go, a hot dog with everything in it, two for the price of one." The man handed Caroline two huge pieces of bread with sausage, onion, fries and everything that was right and good in the world.

"How did you know that these would only cost us 3 dollars?" Caroline was bewildered.

"We were his last customers and it's rather cold tonight so all he wants is to pack and go home." Klaus took his hot dog from her hand.

Caroline focused on her snack but not even the huge amount of food in her hand was able to drift her thoughts far from him. "Will you eat this?"

"I prefer a good _smoky paprika-rubbed filet mignon with tomato basil salsa_ but I was financially limited tonight, nonetheless it doesn't mean that I can't appreciate what the city has to offer, I just try to stay away from things that I was forced to eat because I couldn't afford anything else at the time."

Caroline looked at him somewhat stunned. "Every single time that I rejoice because I finally have you nailed down to a tee, you flip everything on me."

He chuckled loudly. "Why would I make your life so easy?"

She answered with a big bite that made her palate explode with the combination of flavors. "Oh God, this is so good."

He smugly smiled knowing she would love it but in reality he was enjoying it as well, these hotdogs were still the best in the city and because it had been years since he lastly had one of these, they tasted even better.  
Caroline munched trying not to waste anything and silently they started walking, she was convinced at first that their destination was random but as soon as they crossed the gates of Battery Park she knew there was a purpose behind it.

"You don't prefer Central Park?" she was really surprised about that.

Klaus halted in front of a huge bronze sculpture. "I discovered this park on the very first days I arrived to New York and it became my home during the days before I got my first gig and enough money to rent a room."

The sculpture was called The Immigrants and it represented a line of people waiting, the range of emotions captured in their faces was dazzling to watch and Caroline couldn't help the question. "Which one were you, the desperate one or the relieved one to finally reach shore?"

"I was the confident one."

"Of course you were." Caroline looked at him wanting to scowl his smugness but instead melted into a smile and reached out to touch him.

Klaus stopped eating with the sudden motion and the realization didn't arrive quickly enough, she wasn't stroking his cheek but cleaning something from it.

"You have a bit of mustard there…" she whispered while rubbing her thumb across his scruff, she didn't want to remain for long there but it felt nice to feel her fingers tickled by the hint of a beard that he have.

When reason poked her with a hot iron she hastily took her hand away from his face and carried on eating with her eyes limited to her food.  
And like they were part of a reality show where his girlfriend constantly called him when Caroline messed up, his phone started ringing.

Klaus was done with his hot dog but his patience towards the name on the ID caller were about the same so he not only refused the call, he also disconnected his phone.

Caroline glanced enough to catch it and her tongue worked faster than her filter. "Did you have a fight with Camille?"

Klaus put his phone away. "She overbears me sometimes."

So it wasn't clear that the fight was because of her. "I hope my name wasn't mentioned in the fight." she still hated how conflicted she felt about that.

"Camille is a very easy person to live with, she's not temperamental or jealous. She doesn't have many opinions and she's reliable…" Klaus' posture changed while he spoke about her, the weight was so visible that his body curved a bit.

"Can I offer you a friendly advice?" Caroline widened her eyes. "Don't write your own vows."

Klaus softly laughed. "I don't plan on it…" he had the smallest deep breath. "All that I've described just now is how I see her but not how I know her…"

Caroline stayed behind when he walked away from the sculpture, there was an inner scream roaring inside of her. _Get to know __**me**__, see __**me**__, not her._

* * *

Klaus looked away from the amazing view to the girl taking a seat next to him on the bench, she really had one of those smiles that overshadowed the bright stars in the sky.

"We've already got the crush thing out of the way, so you can talk to me about anything." she softly offered.

The genuine side of Caroline left him aghast. "I like you too much Caroline, to do that to you."

Her eyes sparkled in stun and he understood he had said too much, he looked to the waterfront immersed in his conflicts again.  
He arrived to New York with only one conviction, he was going to be the very opposite of what his father accused him of being for 15 painful years, he was not going to fail and people would remember his name, he would not be a loser.

And he was successful at that, he fought hard and viciously when he had to, he showed no mercy when it came down to prove that he was the best and that he was a force to be reckon with inside of one of the most competitive industries.  
Feelings were left out of his crusade because that's how it had to be and Camille was perfect exactly because of that, it was never about romance and love between them, he made an honorable avowal to Father Kieran and he was keeping his promise.

They were going to get married and he would provide a good life to her, she would be financially secure and he would perform his husband duties so that she would be content within their marriage but he wasn't obliged to be connected to her emotionally in order to do these things and that was the true perfection of his relationship with Camille.  
He could rely on her to expect nothing more from him because he was utterly incapable of delivering it, he was dry of feelings, emotions like joy or pain, simple things that others had and that he shut down because they would only get in the way of his path to prove himself.

_Love_, that sentiment that inspired songs, poems, that made the world turn or collide was for others, he simply erased it long ago from his life because he didn't need it.  
Klaus imagined the infinity of the water in front of him as complex to understand as the biggest conflict burning inside of him yet.

When he told Caroline that he couldn't do this to her, he was truthful, not only to her but to himself as well.  
She deserved someone who wasn't as damaged as he was, someone who could give her more than the little he gave Camille.

"Klaus?"

He looked at Caroline suspicious that she had been calling him for some time now. "You can see the Statue of Liberty from here."

"I know." she replied without looking away from him. "What have you planned next on our tour?"

He allowed this cheeky grin to come forward. "I can't pay for a ride on a carriage but I can get you close enough to nuzzle a horse."

"Ok…" she liked the idea a lot and left the bench as enthusiastic as he did.

* * *

They weren't walking fast so they would take about another 40 minutes to reach 6th Avenue and they were by no means in a hurry, they were just walking and lazily talking about his love for the horses in New York's biggest park.  
Instinctively Caroline guessed why Klaus spent a lot of time near them and for the last hour he had told her all about his favorite horse, Theo.

"My brother Elijah gave it to me when I turned 10, we became inseparable at the time…" Klaus' joy faded although he loved talking about his black stallion so much.

Caroline didn't want to stop at all, she could listen to him all night and still feel like they hadn't talked enough. "Elijah is your older brother, right?"

"Yes, Elijah is four years older than me but he makes it feel like it's a bigger gap, he's the epitome of righteousness."

"Does he know that you like to be the devil in your vacant hours? He might ground you if he finds out." she wiggled her eyebrows.

He countered her silly face with a scowl.

Caroline laughed but she didn't overdo it, instead she sneakily started walking closer to him. "Was he the one you were arguing with, back at the hotel in LA?" she slowly looked at Klaus hoping he wouldn't close up now.

"Yes, he is also the embodiment of stability and he handles all the paperwork necessary for the life I lead. I lack the patience for the numbers therefore he counts those while I spend them."

"He must be raging right now…" Caroline buried her chin in the warm scarf.

"I enjoy pushing his limit buttons." Klaus smirked.

"But we are going to make a lot of money and then he will be happy again." she found a quick solution. "I will buy him something nice when the money starts coming in, what does he like?"

"Canali, Kiton... all the tailor-made suits."

Caroline chewed on her lip a little. "Maybe we will start with a tie."

Klaus found her funny and they laughed together all too at ease with each other.  
Since they were on 5th Avenue now, they actually paid attention to the stores and Caroline already selected the ties she liked in a very classy window store.

But the most extraordinary thing was still to come, Caroline was astonished to find a window store with live mannequins in it, there were two beautiful girls dressed in ballerina outfits and the male was wearing a suit.

She looked for Klaus with a giant happy smile. "That's the coolest thing I ever saw."

"It's quite common to find it in Italy and I saw it once in Prague…" Klaus enjoyed the uniqueness as well. "I hadn't seen it elsewhere yet."

One of the models lifted an arm, making a circle with the one in front of her and Caroline mimicked her on the other side of the window.

"I wanted to be a ballerina when I was really young." she told Klaus perfecting her pose.

"You weren't one of those who started singing when still inside of your mother's belly?"

Caroline got on her toes and did another pose with her arms over her head. "No, my dad gave me one of those jewelry boxes with a ballerina when I was little and I wanted to be like her badly." she sighed having a little spin and losing her balance entirely.

Klaus caught her before she staggered to a fall. "Indisputably there is a bit more grace when you sing."

Caroline laughed in his arms. "You think?"

He took his time letting her go but she wasn't hurrying to leave the hands that were warming her shoulders and the eyes that were curving every line in her face.  
They were still smiling at each other when that mandatory space was once more forged between them.

"Do you keep in touch with your father?" Klaus asked her as they picked up their lazy walk.

"Not really, he started a new family, all _children-free_."

Coming to think about it, Klaus didn't know much about Caroline and he broke his rules again. "And your mother?"

"She found relief in guns."

Klaus steered his head to her in slow motion.

Caroline giggled. "She's the town's Sheriff."

"The Forbes women are impressive on their own."

She smiled hugely because of the compliment and they crossed the street heading for the line of horses waiting with carriages for the last clients of the night.

"What about yours? I've heard about your jerk father but you don't really talk about your mother." she carefully ventured on some troubled waters.

"She left shortly after giving birth to Rebekah, I suppose she woke up one day feeling tired of it all and just left everything behind." There was the softest crack in his voice. "I know I did."

"It takes strength to walk away from something that's hurting us and going after something better." Caroline didn't see it as cowardice at all. "I hated my father for the longest time when he left us but then one summer I insisted that I wanted to see him and my mother reluctantly drove across the country to his house. When we arrived to his street, I could see him in the driveway washing his car and I remember that his new companion came out of the house with a glass of lemonade and my father smiled at him in a way that I had never seen him smile. He was happy and I felt happy to see him like that."

"I'm not sure my mother found her happiness away from us and I know for a fact that some of us are still relentlessly searching for it, even if we are not worthy of it."

Caroline spoke with a throb in her chest. "Everyone deserves to be happy Klaus, even the devil."

He chose to keep a possible reply to himself, he wasn't used to the continuous shake of his beliefs.

Once near the horses, Caroline's personality really took over and she won the hearts of a few horse owners, it was common to let a few tourists feed the horses with carrots but Caroline's smile and natural sympathy awarded her with a lot of attention and by the time she left with Klaus, she already knew the name of all the horses, the name of the owners and had pictures with everyone.

Klaus was convinced that she would have earned a free ride as well if she simply asked for it but Caroline was too good in her heart to cheat like that, also the big smile she had left after being so close to horses was probably the best memory he was taking with him tonight.

"You're really good with horses." she rushed to catch up to him on the street.

"They responded to you, not to me." Klaus tried to sound pouty about the horses kissing her and not him.

"I find them so beautiful and magical." she looked back at the carriages once more.

"Horses are strong, usually very hard to tame but incredibly loyal and trust worthy…" Klaus pretended to be puzzled. "What could you possibly find relatable in that?"

Caroline snuggled closer to him on the sidewalk. "We also have great hair." she joked bringing her hands close to her mouth to keep them warm with her hot breath.

"Are you cold?"

"I'm freezing…" she admitted the way her body was responsive to the increasingly cold night.

Klaus wrapped an arm around her shoulders and brought her closer to him attempting to warm her a bit with his heat, whether it was because it felt like being pressed against an oven or because he just made her nervous by having her so close to him, the reality is that it worked and Caroline became instantly warmer.

"What did you want to be when you were younger?" she asked as a way to keep her mind away from his seductive smell or the amazing feel of his body tucking hers closely.

"I wanted to be an artist, I was quite good with a painting brush."

"Was?" Caroline looked at his neck, he really had nice skin.

"I haven't painted anything or done a drawing in years, I just lost interest after painting everything that I possibly could."

"Did you keep the paintings?"

He laughed. "Knowing Elijah, he possibly kept everything in a room hoping that I would get back to it someday."

"Your voice changes when you talk about Elijah, it's different from when you talk about Kol or Rebekah."

"Kol is a spoiled brat who had everything easily handed to him yet still managed to wreck everything with style." Klaus warmly smiled. "I also have no idea what he will come up with next, he can easily call me at 4am to announce that he's betrothed or that he's in prison."

"You really like him but have that whole hate-love thing going on with him." Caroline kept her eyes on his this time.

"Rebekah is a Princess with her whims and charms, but with that one I have a grudge because she snatched my best friend while I was still introducing them."

"That leaves Elijah, the older brother." Caroline could almost guess Klaus' next words.

"I owe him my life."

She gulped down loudly, she didn't come close enough.

"He arranged for my escape while I was recuperating from my father's demented attack with a sword, he gave me his savings and a way out and I took it. Elijah stayed behind to protect Kol and Rebekah and by the time my father went to the hospital looking for me, I was already at the doors of Castle Clinton."

"So when does your book come out? Because that's one hell of a life story." she said in a daze.

Klaus chuckled loudly. "There are those who prefer the supernatural stories."

"Maybe I'll write a song about you one day."

It was his turn to look at her dazzled. "Would you be able to fit this much perfection into a single song?"

She scoffed him by looking away with a huff. "You'll just have to wait and see."

"Don't forget to thank me at the Grammy's."

She laughed entertained but still without looking at him. "I'll probably be one of those who will thank everyone and forget the manager in all of the speeches."

"Nik is a very easy name to remember." he assertively said.

Caroline's body froze as a stone cold reaction, she slowly turned her head to find nothing but confidence behind his honest request to drop another wall between them. "I like Klaus." she simply answered.

And he smiled genuinely at her. "And perhaps that's why I fancy you so much Caroline."

This time the heat reached her cheeks and her heart quickened because he was the first to break eye-contact.

"I know of a place that is open all night." he pointed to a street name that she didn't bother checking.

Quite honestly she was sad that he took his arm away and that he was keeping his hands inside of his jacket pockets now.

* * *

"Good night, what will it be?" the woman at the diner asked.

Klaus dropped the rest of the money he had left on the table. "What can we get for that amount?"

The woman sighed, she was so tired of the crazy ones. "A cup of coffee and a piece of pie."

Klaus used his _really_ charming smile. "There's not a chance you could add some hot chocolate for my friend?"

The woman smiled back at him. "Throw a phone number along with those dimples and I will think about it."

Caroline almost cracked into laughter but Klaus didn't.

"Do you have a pen?" Klaus was all suave and on top of his game.

The woman in her 50's with a big hairdo and heavy eyeliner pulled a pen from between her big breasts. "There you go, Sean Connery."

He effortlessly wrote down a few numbers and handed the paper back to her with a wink.

"I swear that this city still surprises me." she smiled when she noticed that he even added his name to the number. "I'll be right back with your order, Stefan."

Caroline closed her eyes while her hands covered her mouth but she didn't hold back the laughter for long.

"I hope she doesn't call him while Bekah is in town." Klaus murmured with a cringe.

Caroline shook her head. "Poor Stefan."

Klaus rascally smirked as the woman came back with a cup of black coffee, one hot chocolate and a slice of apple pie.

"That looks and smells delicious." Caroline wanted to be the first to try the pie.

"I hope it's better than the coffee." Klaus harshly swallowed the insipid beverage.

Caroline tried her chocolate and wasn't that satisfied with hers either.

After watching her Klaus wanted to suggest a fancier diner place where his money would provide them with exquisite things like a Cappuccino or a Latte but Caroline stood up before he could say a word.  
She quickly returned to their table with two empty cups, she took Klaus' coffee and her hot chocolate and with skill she divided and then mixed them in equal shares.

"Who said that sour coffee can't mix with sweet chocolate perfectly?" she handed him a cup.

He was surprised with how good it tasted and the pie was good as well, so they sat there sharing a slice of apple pie and exchanging long stares without talking, it was beyond belief the amount of information they shared already during one single night.

* * *

"You haven't told me…" Klaus somberly touched the button to call the elevator for them. "Did I surpass the challenge?"

She shared his gloomy sensation, she was sad that their night was ending but his question made her smile a little. "I had fun."

He was similar to a kid smiling when the elevator doors welcomed them inside. "I enjoyed having fun with you love."

Caroline nibbled on her lower lip to stop herself from grinning and she didn't go too far inside the elevator, choosing to stand closely next to him instead.  
To her supreme stun Klaus inched closer to her as the elevator took them upstairs and his hand brushed hers, without moving she waited to see if it was an accidental clash but his fingers were tickling hers like he was dying to take her hand.

She could hear her heart thumping in her ears and his breath heavy, trying to keep up with hers.  
Their hands brushed against each other again without fully touching and they kept their eyes straight ahead but before the doors opened again, he lightly held her index between two fingers.

Like a secret that was to keep between them and inside the elevator they exited with a smile refusing to speak of it.

"Do you think that they are sleeping?" Caroline whispered once Klaus opened the door.

The silence was overpowering so Klaus assumed that yes. "I think that we are safe."

"Are you going to stay here?" Caroline asked when he accompanied her to the guest rooms.

"It's rather late and we have to be up very early." he stopped by his door. "Tyler and the others are waiting for your last touches on the songs and I have a crucial meeting."

"We should try to sleep at least a couple of hours, in the morning there's work to do." Caroline answered from her door. "So… hmm… thanks for tonight and goodnight Klaus." she sweetly added.

"Goodnight Caroline." he opened his door.

They went inside their bedrooms at the same time and closed the doors with the same delay, like it was the last thing they wanted to do.

* * *

Klaus took his jacket off dropping it on the bed, unwilling to sleep he simply laid on the bed thinking about the last hours spent with her, how easily and quickly they rushed by.  
They went against everything he established as a rule between him and a client and still none of it felt wrong or out of place.

Sleep was not an option when his mind was so all over the place so Klaus headed for his bathroom knowing that a shower was the right calming effect he needed.

* * *

In her bathroom Caroline stood under the spray of hot water smiling, she had so many feels exploding inside of her that she could barely keep track of them all.  
But she was directing them all to a good place, she washed her hair twiddling with words inside of her head, there was a melody that she started humming and then words that she added mentally until she was ready to sing them.

She only had the first rhyme of a song forming in her head and the tittle of it but it summoned up everything she was feeling.  
Gravity.

"_Something always brings me back to you…"_

* * *

**Soundtrack: **

Thinking out loud - _Ed Sheeran_


	8. Fun and games

Matt held his hand in the air, he made a fist so that Caroline payed attention to him. "And that's a wrap."

His voice echoed inside of the recording room where Caroline had been all morning working on the chorus of _Hold my heart _and she reacted to his thumb up with a party dance routine, it was mostly a few dorky waves with her body but she now had her second song edited and ready to show the world.

Jesse had a big cup of coffee for her when she joined them on the other side of the studio where the boys were gathered around the mixing table.

It was heartwarming how Jesse found out just how much she loved Latte and now brought her one everyday or how Matt pulled a chair for her next to him at the table, in a short span of time she created this unique bond with the band that was entirely healthy and good for her.

"I have breakfast." Jeremy arrived with a box that Caroline recognized immediately.

"I want the pink one." She said with jittery fingers, Macaroon cookies were her most recent obsession thanks to Jeremy and they soon devoured the box, not even the non-pink ones survived.

The last one to arrive and the true embodiment of a Rock Star was Tyler showcasing his big shiny sunglasses, his messy black hair and a shirt with the Ramones that had seen better glorious days.

"What time is it?" He asked without bothering to check his phone.

The same he dropped all over Matt's buttons carelessly, he reached for an abandoned coffee cup hoping that there was still something left in it but the disappointment rushed to his features fast.

Sweet like only she was able to be, Caroline handed him the rest of her coffee. "It's past 10 already, where have you been?"

"I went to a gig last night and afterwards I went backstage and then it was just the usual disarray." Tyler leaned back on the chair with a tired outlet of a sigh.

"Did you went to see one of your rock bands?" Caroline softly asked for a report.

"Hmmm." He answered without lifting his head.

"And you just ran into Shakira while you were there?"

Tyler jolted his head towards Matt who was showing the others a selfie that was taken backstage. "Give me my phone back."

Matt tossed it to Jesse instead. "You look like such a fanboy."

"Aww… look at that smile." Jesse teased him over the huge grin Tyler had in the picture.

"You're just jealous that I was that close to her." Tyler grumbled.

"Those dimples don't lie my friend, you were very happy to meet her." Jesse moved the phone around the group.

"You look very happy Tyler and like you had fun." Caroline said when his phone reached her.

"Thank you Care." He accepted his phone back. "She's a very nice woman and she's one hell of a performer, the Barclays Center was packed to see her."

"It must be amazing to sing in a big arena for thousands and thousands of people who are only there to see you." Caroline's dreamy eyes sparkled with the thought.

"Soon it will be us, Care." Matt sounded irrefutable in his confidence.

Caroline smiled from ear to ear, what a wonderful future that would be.

"Assuming that you want us there with you, once you hit the famous title you might want to change a few things…" Jeremy quietly voiced.

"The most important is that I have this huge production in a Lady Gaga style and that you are all dressed up as beautiful mermaids." Caroline slowly looked at all of them before bursting into a silly laughter.

"I could warm up to the thought of wearing shells strategically placed." Jesse chuckled.

"I rather be on stage with a Gladiator theme, very little to wear and a lot of chest showing but still oozing all of my raw sex appeal in a manly way." Tyler grinned already on board with the visual running in his head.

Caroline pointed her finger at him with a narrow of her eyes. "I'm the main attraction here so you can't steal away my spotlight!"

"I can try." He protested.

In response Caroline shrugged. "And miserably fall flat."

A big happy laughter happened in the room and it took everyone a second to realize that Klaus was arriving with someone by his side.

The girl was a stunning blonde with really long hair and a perky look, she came closer to Caroline inspecting her from head to toe. "Hi, I'm Lexi. I'm responsible for scouting for new talents at EMI and Klaus showed me a very intriguing demo today…" She had a little motion of her head to slightly tilt it. "He says that the voice in there is untainted."

Caroline's eyes did this furtive search for Klaus. "You need to work on your manners to introduce me to famous people."

Lexi snapped her fingers loudly. "Personality is on point but you have ten seconds to impress me with your voice. Go." She demanded by steering a finger towards Caroline's face.

Barely able to think Caroline sang the first thing that came to mind and did the chorus of the song that she had sang all morning repeatedly.

Lexi eyed her serious and apparently thoughtful, she stopped Caroline by raising her hand and the mood inside of the studio froze in anticipation, even Klaus looked on the fence when she looked at him.

"Bring her to the Hamptons tomorrow, I want my boss to meet her." Lexi left as startling as she had arrived.

"What just happened?" Caroline wobbled her head confused.

"You are going to be wooed by EMI Records." Jesse was the voice of wonder.

"There's a big Golf tournament in the Hamptons this weekend but it's not only the old Maverick from EMI that will be there, the CEO from Universal will also be there and a few other major players and we are going to stir up a little healthy dispute between them." Klaus finished a text to someone before looking up from his phone. "I've sent the demo to everyone saying that you were invited by EMI which is sort of sprinkling an ocean full of sharks with blood."

"Well played Mr. Dude." Tyler was impressed by the cunning move.

"When do we leave?" Caroline couldn't distinguish between her anxiety and her excitement.

"This afternoon." Klaus smiled.

Matt and Tyler poked Caroline's back repeatedly.

"Can we take the band with us?" She softly asked Klaus.

"I don't see your point." Easily he shut her request down.

"My inspiration is flowing right now and I don't want to stop working on my songs, if I had the boys around we could work on a couple of songs that I'm currently writing." The plead was done with her strongest point, those blue adoring eyes of hers fixated on his.

"If they can arrange for their own transportation…" He cringed out a compromise.

She rewarded him with a beautiful smile but Klaus still needed to get them a place to stay and left to work on it, as soon as he closed the door behind him the guys erupted in happy screams and hugged Caroline effusively.

* * *

Klaus stepped back when Kol opened the door of his hotel room, he was pushing a shirt down his head.

"Did we have anything planned for today?" He sprinted a hand across a bundle of messy hazelnut hair.

Not only he sounded confused he also sounded tired and wheezing and Klaus fell into an uncomfortable spot. "No, I only came over because I need to borrow your house in the Hamptons."

"What for?" Kol spread his arms across the threshold like he was keeping something inside of the room that he didn't want Klaus to see.

"I need to take Caroline out there for a social gathering during the weekend and two nights on a rented house is far more expensive than what I'm paying per week for her to record on the studio in here." Klaus explained but notably Kol was busy and he didn't want to linger around. "Have you sold the house yet?" He hadn't thought of that detail.

Kol lifted his arm so that a tiny Bonnie peeked at Klaus wrapped in a sheet.

"We are currently negotiating." She cutely smiled at Klaus.

"My apologies for interrupting." He looked up at Kol catching his glee all printed across his face.

"Swing by my office Klaus, I will call my secretary and she will have the keys ready for you." Bonnie turned away to get her phone.

"Next time don't answer the door while leaving a beautiful woman unattended for." Klaus swiftly judged Kol with a mild smirk.

"I'm not taking advice from you because you are betrothed to someone by sympathy." Kol closed the door on his face.

"Is Camille really that wrong for Klaus?" Bonnie waited by the sofa for Kol.

"She's wrong. That's all there is to it." Kol cupped her face gently.

Bonnie smiled. "You're right, I don't want to talk about her when we still have a mediation to settle." She brushed her lips against his.

Slowly he trailed her upper lip with soft kisses while her hands were busy removing his shirt and then opening his Jeans, he glided his lips to her neck and his hands down her bare back making the sheet drop to her feet and knowing that the sofa was closer than the bed they decided to make love right there.

* * *

"If you go out to one of the hundred Pubs in town, you most definitely should wear this one." Rebekah folded a gorgeous cream dress for Caroline.

"I can't accept another piece of clothing Rebekah, you already gave me so many things."

Rebekah insisted on the gift. "You are going to love the Hamptons, it's a beautiful estate where the rich flock to appreciate the wonders that money shaped and where you need to look your best."

"I'm a little nervous." Caroline sat on the bed next to her packed bag.

"In 24 hours I guarantee that they will all be fighting to give you a contract."

She fit her two side braids into her palms and deeply inhaled. "I'm ready for battle."

The gesture was funny and Rebekah laughed softly before having this tiny little wince. "I'm going to miss you greatly, it was superb to know you Caroline."

Caroline leaned her head to the side. "But I will be back on Monday."

"Alas I will not be here, or Stefan." Rebekah informed her. "I have to go back to Australia and I've convinced Stefan to go with me, we are going to rent a house while I shoot what's left of the film and then we are planning on a big journey together."

"That's so endlessly romantic." Caroline sighed.

"Promise me that you will visit me when your world tour takes you to Australia."

Caroline laughed. "That is a deal." She engaged on a hug that was tightly answered by Rebekah.

* * *

"My sister finally convinced you to leave New York." Klaus took the glass that Stefan gave him.

"She's right, I mean… it makes no sense that she's all alone over there while I'm here alone and waiting for her to turn her computer on. I can make music anywhere and I should be supportive of my wife when her career is peaking."

Klaus smiled proud of his friend. "I will arrange for another suite in my hotel for Caroline."

Stefan shook his head on the instant. "Absolutely not, she can stay here while she's working in New York and you can stay here whenever you are hiding from Camille." Stefan smiled.

"I haven't told her about my incoming weekend yet."

"Call her when you are already on the way." Stefan suggested.

"Or when I get there." Klaus had his drink somberly.

* * *

"I wish that we were doing this trip on a convertible." Caroline screamed with her head stuck outside the window.

Klaus lowered the sound of the radio. "So that you would be standing up on a moving car with your arms open?"

She giggled returning to her seat. "You _have_ to get a convertible." She raised the volume of the radio.

"I have one back in London." He brought the volume down.

She stared at the little volume button before deciding to spike Klaus. "Where it rains all the time? That's a waste."

She leaned over to bring the volume up but he moved only seeing a fraction of her movement and they ended up touching the button at the same time, the soft contact instigated a meeting of their eyes and a slow redraw from the radio area.

"What are those new songs that you mentioned back at the studio?" Klaus focused on the road again.

"One of them is about gravity, how you can't pull away from something no matter how hard you try to stay away from it." She went back to admiring the gorgeous landscape as well.

Klaus cheated a sneak look at her.

"The other is about understanding that even when you meet someone who is perfect it doesn't mean that they are perfect for you." She met his gaze serious.

"That is seldom the case."

She smiled but in a teasing way. "This isn't Twilight so keep your eyes on the pretty road."

"Have you pondered about the album title already?" He dared her nerves by only looking away after a few long seconds.

"_Caroline_." She answered promptly. "I know that it's not original but I want the world to whisper my name when they hold my album in their hands."

"Adele had a fixation with her age and now it's just an ink reminder that her career is beginning to strive at age 21..."

Klaus clearly didn't like her idea and she crossed her arms with a grumpy face. "The _Spaghetti Incident_ is already taken." She mentioned one of the weirdest album names she ever recalled.

Klaus smiled hugely before mentioning his choice without a hiccup. "_Vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot_ by Sparklehorse."

Caroline gasped with a big jump on her seat. "I never met anyone who was able to say that without stalling or getting it wrong."

"It's the first album that I bought with my first paycheck in New York, I walked into this vintage record store and I acquired the most eccentric name that I found on a cover and to this day it's still one of my favorite albums."

"The first CD that I bought with my own money was Anouk's _Together Alone_. I worked all summer at the town's only Pub just so I could buy that record and a shiny new stereo to blast my favorite song over and over again."

"_Nobody's wife_?" He easily guessed.

"What's yours?" She eagerly asked him.

"_Purple rain_ from Prince." He said with a warm adoration in his voice.

"Damn it!" Caroline fisted the air with a hand. "I was going to bet on something from The Beatles."

"Because I'm English? That is truly groundbreaking Caroline." He teased without looking at her.

"Does that mean that your favorite movie isn't The _English Patient_?"

Klaus laughed but quickly battled with his next strike. "I'm late to assume that yours isn't _American Pie_?"

"That's thoughtless of you, how can you put this incredibly tearjerking love story against dimwit teenager porn?" She held her hands apart.

"That's fair love, what makes you curl up into a fetal position consumed by feelings?" He looked at her waiting for an honest answer.

"_Moulin Rouge_." She shared with him but demanding the same in return.

He responded to her dead serious stare. "_Madam Butterfly_ which is the cinematographic take on my favorite Opera."

She narrowed her eyes a bit, she didn't know either and felt sour over it.

Klaus pulled over to a fancy driveway. "We've arrived."

Caroline sprinted out of the car and dropped her chin when she saw how majestic the view was.

The band was all traveling in an SUV and they stopped just behind Klaus' BM, they also had a greatly satisfied look in their faces for the location.

"That's one big ass house." Tyler took his sunglasses off.

Caroline took her bag from the back seat and rushed after Klaus, once inside the house she nervously laughed and dropped the bag on the mahogany floor, she was awed.

Jesse and Matt ran to the glass door that gave way to the backyard of the mansion.

"There is a pool, I repeat, there is a pool." Jesse yelled to inform the others.

Jeremy was smelling the colorful candles. "It smells nice in here." He told Caroline when she walked by him.

Caroline touched the furniture and the soft sofa, she loved the fireplace but ventured through the rest of the house intuitively.

She found a staircase and went up to another floor where there were a lot of bedrooms, the doors were all open so she had a good look inside of them, still without delay she moved on.

* * *

Klaus found her when she was inspecting the kitchen or more accurately, he found her with her head stuck inside of the fridge. "Are we hungry?"

Caroline straightened up caught in the act. "We?" She asked with a piece of ham filling her mouth.

He burst into laughter floored by her cuteness.

She closed the fridge with a big sandwich in her hands, it had a bit of everything she found with a valid expiration date and she chewed happy while waiting for his move.

"The others want to go to a Pub and since I need you on point tomorrow forth, I'm tagging along to make sure that you return home early."

Her eyes widened and before he could foretell she started bouncing up and down excited.

"We will be home before nine and we are leaving in ten minutes."

She took his palm and left her sandwich with him. "I need to change."

He looked after her as she raced away in her casual Jeans and Sabrina shoes and then looked at the food she abandoned, slowly he lifted one slice of bread surprised to find so many things under it.

He glanced for any sort of movement around him but certain that he was alone Klaus had one bite of the unusual sandwich, surprisingly tomato went well with ham and he clasped his lips impressed.

* * *

The nearest Pub was close by and they were all taking a short 15 minute walk there, Matt and his mates were lively talking and Klaus was entertained with his phone but somehow he was the first to see her coming out of the house.

Caroline was wearing an airy and light cream summer dress with short length and a big cleavage exposure, her curls were dancing over her naked shoulders and she had a huge smile finishing up her presentation.

"I'm ready." She said when all the men stood there just gawking at her in silence.

"Yes!" Matt clapped to bring life to the rest of the squad. "Let's go look at other girls."

It was good to remind them that Caroline was off limits and he took the lead yearning to at least get drunk.

Klaus moved away from the car and started walking after the others but with the action he didn't anticipate Caroline's mischievous behavior and startling lost his phone as she swiftly plugged it out of his hand.

"Tonight we are going to have fun so there are no cellphones allowed." She opened the trunk and tossed his phone in there.

Klaus huffed with an attempt to go around her but she melted against the locked trunk with a daring look at him.

"You will not hide all night in the safety of your phone." She stepped to the side to block his next try.

"This weekend is vital for us and I can't afford to play your silly games, now of all times sweetheart."

"No phones." She slid to the right. "You said that Lexi is only waiting for us tomorrow which means that tonight we are only a group of friends going out to have a few drinks and socialize."

"I don't do that." He dropped his voice ruthlessly.

"There's always space to learn." She took his arm and started to pull him down the driveway.

"I need to have my phone close by." He was like a rock that refused to budge.

Caroline blew her locks out of the way and used all of her strength to haul him to a single motion. "Don't be so stubborn, if you tried to connect with us you would see that we are really cool and that having fun is not a sin." She popped her eyes silly and made her seriously expression.

Granted, she was adorable like a little child trying to move an iron door that was locked and guarded by seven chains but while she pushed and huffed he had a step which entirely unbalanced her and she stumbled in a clumsy attire.

Klaus' force was enough to balance her up and she laughed immersed in all of her joy, it was striking to watch and Klaus halted again only to admire her.

"Are you ready to have fun?" She had a big enchanting smile to stick to the question.

"You speak of things nonexistent in my life." His hand moved but his brain demanded that it stayed away from her porcelain face.

Her innocence came out shining. "It's not so scary once you try it." She closed her face gravely. "It doesn't need to be always so gloomy and heavy, life can be light and happy."

"I forfeit to a few hours of shallow drinking and for the next two days you don't challenge my orders the tiniest. There will not be a single protest or debate or the faintest argumentation over my managing."

In a proper Caroline way she opened her mouth to elaborate a defense but upon his unwavering stance she swallowed her fuming words. "Ugh, fine!" She agreed with his rules.

* * *

An hour and twenty minutes later they were all gathered around a round table with shot glasses and a spinning empty bottle.

It stopped pointed at Jeremy and he faced Matt for his question.

"Most awkward, I want the earth to swallow me, moment." Matt grinned.

Jeremy hung his head. "When I was 14 my mother walked in on me while I was exploring a few parts of my body."

Everyone made this loud noise and closed their eyes, almost feeling the skin crawling moment themselves.

After drinking Jeremy twirled the bottle and it ended on Tyler's side. "Weirdest girl you have ever dated."

Tyler clashed his teeth together refusing to answer.

"The rules of the game state that you either answer without omitting or you have to walk to that stage and sing." Caroline pointed at the little stand with a small karaoke machine.

Tyler sighed. "It wasn't the weirdest but it was the most shocking one, I met this girl on a club and after a few drinks we started kissing and whilst the night progressed and I started touching her, I found out that she was a he."

Matt roared in laughter while the rest of the guys almost showered Caroline with their drinks, she however was attentive for the rest of the tale.

"Did you go all the way?" She asked him when he evidently ceased to tell his story.

"It's only one question by spin." He critiqued her and moved the bottle, when it ended with the tip towards Klaus he lowered his shoulders. "Most memorable night with a girl?" He asked with deep hopes that he didn't use the bottle to beat him up.

"A five dollar date in New York." He answered after guiding a look at Caroline.

She hid her blush with her palms, pretending to be utterly clueless to his words and remaining still without further reaction.

"That's cool." Jesse was a big fan of simple affairs as well.

"It's your time to spin the bottle, isn't it Klaus?" Caroline asked a bit uneasily and with her elbows on top of the table.

He carried on with the game but in his own pace and when the bottle accused her she cursed all the gods who plotted against her.

In the same unhurried manner that he handled the bottle, Klaus leaned back on his seat and prepared his bullet. "The last time you've trusted someone with the reigns of your future without jumping in every two seconds believing that you know better than everyone?"

There was a little dither in her breath but Caroline smiled without giving him the pleasure of an actual scoff and pushed her chair back so that she could stand up. "With your excuse, my grace." She did a little bowing of her knees and strutted towards the stage.

"How did five grown men get tricked by a singer into using the singing as the only way out of a direct answer?" Jeremy was puzzled.

Jesse was more interested in what she was singing and his face lightened up with her choice.

"…_ A few times I've been around that track_

_So it's not just gonna happen like that_

_Because I ain't no hollaback girl_

_I ain't no hollaback girl_…"

Matt and Tyler were swinging to the pitch on rhythm until they decided to join Caroline on stage, their voices weren't as heavenly as hers but they still made a commotion that attracted the attention of the locals.

Jesse slapped Jeremy's chest asking him to follow and soon every one of them was a relentless backup singer for Caroline who was the true artist.

She sang, danced and shook her hair while perfectly delivering the lines without requiring a look at the lyrics and all that Klaus did was enjoy his drink while she performed with all of her sass and cute flirt.

Cute because he needed a good solid semi-innocent word to disguise the way she won him with all of her little hot moves and naughty winks at him.

Dancing on that stage with her tiny steamy dress and her long curly hair, Caroline had every guy and girl wrapped around her finger and perhaps the only one who wasn't leaving a pool of drool behind was this fella who was recording her performance on his phone, a random guy to the crowd filling the Pub but the successful manager of an equally successful Taylor Swift nonetheless.

* * *

Caroline placed her hands on her waist once close to the table where Klaus was sitting alone. "Are you seriously sitting there brooding instead of being over there playing pool with the guys?"

"I'm working on my enigmatic appearance." Klaus kept to himself the fact that he rather have a drink alone instead of _socializing_.

She took his drink so that he followed her and decided on an activity that wouldn't be a huge torture for him, she wasn't that good at darts and that showed in her game display, all the darts ended away from the center and she had his drink with a defeated grumble.

His turn came when she sat on a nearby pool table watching him and she was impressed that he was so good at the game.

"This isn't the first time that you've played darts." She rested the empty glass next to her.

"I'm quite handy with blunt objects." He hit the middle of the board with his last dart.

Caroline left her seat with a leap and removed the darts from the board, she went to her spot in front of him and threw her first dart with her best intentions, it ended on some place on the wall, away from the board.

"Perhaps we should evacuate the Pub before you hurt someone." Klaus laughed on her back.

"I just need to practice Klaus." She plunged another dart far from the mark.

"It's all about your focus." He picked her hand up and came closer to her, he ran his hand across her forearm and folded it so that she would throw in the right position and with the most accuracy.

Caroline closed her eye and sneaked the tip of her tongue a little out of the corner of her mouth.

"You've seen too many films." He made fun of her concentration technics.

"Or you haven't seen enough because this is the typical moment where the hero takes advantage to touch the girl and to make all the crazy sexual tension between them hit the roof." She turned her head enough to look at him.

"There are no tropes required between us."

"That's why there's still a dart in my hand." What she really wanted was to kiss him senselessly.

"If you look at the outer parts of the main circle, that's where the dart will end, if you keep your eyes on the big black circle chances are that dart will not drift too far from your aiming."

"If I aim at the big prize, I will get it?" She grazed her lips instantly, she was doing it again, she was flirting with him without thinking.

"If you take away the circumstances, the environment distractions and the occasional hurdle, I suppose nothing is truly unattainable." The line he never crossed was getting blurrier everyday and he was being passive about it now.

She looked away from his sinful blue pearls and launched the dart on a mission, it ended on the white smaller circle just next to the main one, she didn't hit the mark but she wasn't that off either and he was still pinned to her back and lightly moving his hand across her waist.

* * *

"_B-a-n-a-n-a-s_."

Caroline and Tyler were stomping their feet and chanting down the street, they were on their way back home and stuck on a silly part of the song that she delivered at the bar.

"_A-b_…" Tyler stopped half way to a clap because he messed up the antics.

Caroline laughed loudly and teasingly.

"I do the drums and you do the singing." He hit a few invisible plates.

She snatched his sunglasses for herself. "I want to learn how to play the drums."

They were just reaching the house and Tyler headed right to the pool, he smirked at her before jumping into the water fully clothed. "Only if you embrace the true rock and roll life style." He said from the pool while shaking his head to get the water from his hair.

"Ok." Caroline took her boots off and dived into the pool with a yell. "It's freezing!" She complained as soon as it hit her that she hadn't thought this through.

"You will be ill." Klaus stopped by the rim of the pool scolding her.

Caroline looked at him with her body immersed under water, she was only uncovered from her chin up and her powerful blue eyes matched the color of the water bathed by the moon, it was like watching a mystical bewitching creature and Klaus turned away to seek for his better judgment.

The pool was now a play field for the band but Caroline had responsibilities, loosing her voice during such a crucial weekend would be a nightmare and she swam to leave the water, as she placed her hands on the marble Klaus' big hand showed up to help her.

Caroline took it to propel her exit from the cold water and she accepted the fluffy warm towel that he had for her as well. "Thank you." She said while he wrapped the big towel around her shaking bones.

He stroked her arms scolding her heavily. "You didn't drink that much to lose your judgement in such a reckless way."

Instead of pulling the towel closer to her chest she inched towards his natural warmth. "I know what I'm doing." She whispered with a tremor taking over her voice.

His stroking pattern moved to her shoulders and then to her back in a motion that became as intimate as the way that she was looking straight at him. "Foolish acts like this have consequences."

With dripping drops of water still flowing from her soaking wet hair she nodded. "I know." She clicked her teeth weak to stop her hand that rested over his chest.

The guys were making so much noise behind her that Caroline was stunned to be able to sort out the heavy thumping of her heart and she lowered her eyes to his lips at the same time that his hand found a niche on her lower back.

Instigated by the clear thinking that she was stealing away from him, Klaus swept her cheek with a thumb.

God, the fire that sparkled was consuming like the acceptance on her behalf that he was more than a crush and that she was in love with him.

Faster than her bad judgement this time, she rushed away from him and into the safety of the house, she only stopped in front of the mantel and hurried her breath back but instead of that she heard incoming steps.

With her heart literally beating out of her chest she turned to face a determined Klaus and caught her breath as he paced to her.

Knowing what he wanted, Klaus framed her face with his hands and rested his lips upon hers powerfully, she locked hers with his but only after she got her breath back.

With their lips tight together Caroline touched his neck unsure if she wanted him to carry on or to stop, nevertheless he paused on the kiss and with a fist clenching around her heart she noticed how deeply and unsteady he was breathing.

"I don't want to give in like this…" She rested her forehead against his lips. "There's another woman in your life." She prayed for strength to keep the kiss short.

"All day I've been trying to remind myself of all the reasons keeping me away from you." With reverence he kissed her forehead but hooked his hands with the back of her head and that made her look up at him.

"There's only one reason and she's not me." Caroline pulled away from him with tears in her eyes.

He stared at the fire burning inside of the mantel with a cruel monster sharpening his deathly teeth inside of him, he felt the claws ripping him apart to something that Caroline brought to his life, a violent notion that he hadn't known love before her.

* * *

Caroline was the first to wake up and she came downstairs chuckling when she found the boys sleeping on the sofa, there was no sign of Klaus and she was going to take the chance to have some coffee, it was a tremendous good idea considering how very little sleep she had but a knock on the door shattered her morning peace.

Her blood pressure dropped to a fainting head spin when she encountered Camille on the doorstep looking very mad.

"Where is he? He's not taking any calls since yesterday." Camille pushed her way inside of the manor.

Caroline glanced at the car where his phone was still probably hidden. "I wouldn't know, I haven't seen him yet this morning."

Camille shot her eyes on an unwanted inspection of her rival. "May I have a word with you in private?"

Caroline wasn't sure where the office was so she suggested the driveway, the fresh air would be wonderful to keep her dizziness away.

Camille was rarely this blunt but Klaus was everything to her and she had to keep him in her life. "I don't like how close to you Nik has become." She said once they were outside.

"We are working together and sometimes that means that we have to travel together but we aren't here alone."

Camille stepped closer to Caroline. "No, I talk and you listen."

Caroline wasn't the obedient type but she felt a gush of guilt for what happened in front of the mantel and nodded compliant.

"I'm a woman and I know when others look at Nik the same way I do and I never had to worry about this before but Nik's professional wall cracks when he's around you. I could pretend to be blind and let this one slide but it's the first time that Nik hasn't answered my calls so that means something."

Caroline laced the silk belt of her dress around her finger, uncaring to utter a word.

"You are young and pretty and he's distracted as any older man would be by the little girl in the short skirts but that's going to stop and you are going to be the one to end this fable of nonsense."

If she spoke now she would scream at Camille, ordering her to leave his life, not the other way around.

"Get a boyfriend or let him down gently, I don't care how you do it but I want you to keep your respectful distance from Nik."

"I get it." Finally a sound came out of Caroline.

"I don't think that you do Caroline." Camille softened up. "You're a kid starting a career, what would do for Nik if you had to choose? Would you sacrifice a life that hasn't even started for you?"

Caroline closed her hand around the soft fabric of her green dress.

"Nik has suffered enough while growing up, his father was a brutal man to him and his mother left uninterested of what she left behind. Nik needs stability and a family, and I can give him that. I can be the mother of his children and be that one constant that he never had in his life. Are you willing to drop everything and be that for him?"

"Do you know if that's what he wants?" Caroline quietly asked.

"I know what he needs and I don't see you going to concerts pregnant or juggling a marriage with him while the entire world watches closely. Although Nik is not the jealous type it would never work and you know that. You want different things in life while I want the same that he does."

"You don't know me so can you jump straight to what I want?"

"I made a thesis about people like you and I can give you an essay on how you will never make Nik happy."

"He's not happy now."

Camille's face hardened with shock. "We have been together for years and there's not a thought in him that I don't know about, how dare you be so rude?"

"At least I'm not pretentious to assume I have all the truth when it comes to Klaus, or me." Caroline lost her temper and snapped at the irking therapist.

Camille composed herself with a deep breath. "I'm not going to be vulgar and have a fight with you. I'm asking you to stay away from him and you are going to respect that."

"Do you know the band _Sparklehorse_?"

"I don't like music." Camille stormed away to find Klaus.

With her blood boiling and now slightly regretting that she hadn't kissed Klaus more vehemently, Caroline walked after her.

* * *

Breakfast was something straight out of hell, Camille insisted on inserting herself into the group like someone actually wanted her there, the band was hangover so they only had coffee and hid behind dark shades.

Caroline kept her eyes on the table while Camille was like an annoying appendix that was all over Klaus and the two of them were avoiding to look at each other at all.

"So my eyes haven't betrayed me."

Caroline looked up puzzled to the voice with an accent just echoing next to her. "Enzo?"

"I thought that it was you gorgeous." He pulled a chair ignoring the rest of the crew.

"Why are you here?" She asked him increasingly confused.

"Everyone is here." He beamed at her. "But I am at fault because I don't have flowers this time."

"Are you drunk?" Caroline slowly lifted an eyebrow.

"I had flowers delivered at the studio where you were recording…" Enzo looked at Klaus.

"Can I offer you a cup of coffee, with cyanide?" Klaus easily smiled.

Enzo half-smiled but searched for Caroline's face instead. "The coffee in here is dreadful but I know a little gem just across the street."

"She's not going anywhere with you." Klaus lost the easiness and the smile.

Caroline felt Camille's eyes on her and she rather have coffee with Satan's helper than to endure another second at this table. "I want to know more about the flowers so I'm going." She stood up.

Enzo rejoiced but Klaus was a volcano in the wake.

"We have to be at the golf course in 20 minutes." He said with an anger still under wraps.

"I know." She still left with Enzo and without looking back.

Klaus pushed away his coffee, he didn't care for the way Matt and the others seemed ticked off as well or for the way that Camille incessantly blabbered next to his ear, all that occupied Klaus' senses was the way that he wanted to colonize Enzo's face with his fist.

* * *

**Soundtrack**:

Hips don't lie –_ Shakira feat. Wyclef Jean_

Lean On -_ Major Lazer feat. MØ &amp; DJ Snake_

Hollaback girl – _Gwen Stefani_

Down low – _Alex Winston_

Till the end – _Lucy Rose_


	9. Bad blood

"This is so fun." The charm of spending an entire hour watching a group of old men entertained around a tiny white ball was something that Caroline did not possess.

To top that, Klaus increased her bad humor by judging her early stunt with Enzo. "Certainly it wasn't as fun as your breakfast."

She smiled at him on purpose. "Oh, you got that right. I loved my breakfast and you know why? Because Enzo is actually a really funny guy and he made me laugh a lot."

"That's not hard Caroline, considering how much of a joke he is." Acidly Klaus grumbled.

"At least he's not a conceited idiot who dresses like my granny." Caroline sneered.

"Is there something on your mind sweetheart?"

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him. "Yes, you are marrying a robot who has the Wikipedia physiology at the tip of her tongue and she's not even a real doctor." She spitefully ended her mini rant.

"Camille does have an MD degree, she chose to practice psychology only because it's something that she's passionate about."

Forcefully Caroline swallowed her spite. "Well, she doesn't like music and that's disturbing."

"She doesn't like the world created around it."

"What's not to like?" She asked skeptical.

Klaus eyed the man approaching with anger. "For a start, _him_."

Enzo arrived with a cheeky smile and a rose that he gave Caroline. "This is being delivered personally to avoid getting lost." He said with a scowl that he directed at Klaus.

Klaus dropped a grunt. "She doesn't even like flowers."

Caroline instantly jolted her head at Klaus stunned, very few people knew that about her.

Enzo didn't however let his face drop. "We need to have dinner Caroline so that I can know you better and woo you with the right gifts."

Caroline opened her mouth slightly but it was Klaus' angry breathing that took over the atmosphere around them.

"Is there a valid reason for you to occupy my line of sight Enzo?" Klaus' question came as he pictured making Enzo eat the grass under their feet.

The other was pondering getting his hands on a golf club. "Don't be such an elitist Klaus, the industry belongs to everyone with a good ear."

"You can't tell a bass from a guitar." Klaus maliciously smiled.

Enzo was ready to show him the difference between a right hook and a left one when Lexi joined the group with a big smile.

"Are we all ready for the important day?" She asked excited.

"We are all riled up." Caroline described the mood on point.

* * *

Since Klaus was away on his work assignment Camille was stuck in a house that she didn't know, she had never been here before and she hardly knew the woman in the picture and unexpected owner of the mansion.

Kol's troubled marriage to Bonnie was an affair that she never understood and she found them too different from each other to believe that there was ever going to be a reconciliation that would actually work for those two.

Kol was a grown man who still was clueless about what he wanted to do with his life and Bonnie was a good lawyer who was wasting her talent on the rich and famous, she should be helping those who needed and not giving more money to people who owned ten houses like this one.

The members of this family really liked the status and empty things that money weaved for them, it was sad but thankfully she managed to keep Klaus grounded and to show him what mattered in life the most, it was better for him if he interacted with his dysfunctional family to a minimal.

She placed the wedding picture where she found it and quickly skimmed through the few ones that the couple still had on display, it was slightly annoying that the only picture they had of Klaus featured his horse next to him instead of her.

It wasn't a big secret that the family didn't like her but the women should be more responsive to Camille, it was girl code after all.

As her eyes landed on the next picture Camille's monologue gained force, she picked up the frame containing Klaus' older brother and his wife, Katerina was even worst than Rebekah, at least the blonde talked to her from moon to moon.

The only time she had met with Elijah and Katerina at the same time, the raunchy woman spent the entire time speaking to Elijah in her mother language although Camille knew that she spoke perfect English, she also insisted on calling her _Chamomile_.

It was a blessing that Elijah usually travelled alone to New York on business and that the top model was frequently busy with her shallow world of fashion.

Camille resentfully rested the picture face down on the little casing but her small childish act was caught right at end by Jeremy who was on his way to the pool to meet with the others.

"It fell down." She lied straightening up the silver frame.

"I know who that is." Jeremy quickly took the picture. "That's Katerina Petrova." He easily recognized the international model.

"She's married to Elijah." Camille's resentment did not extend to the polite and gentle man and his name was mentioned softly.

"Lucky fella." Jeremy smiled dreamily, Katerina was a stunning woman.

Camille rolled her eyes while he was looking away, she was the one who was lucky to be married to someone like Elijah.

Jeremy returned the picture next to the others and smiled unbeknownst of what to do next. "So…" He pointed outside. "I'm going…" he smiled again. "That way."

"I will accompany you." While walking with Jeremy, she decided to make him a few questions. "Aren't you a bit young to be in a band?"

"No." Jeremy simply answered.

"Aren't your parents worried that you are missing out on college and a chance to build a safe future for yourself?"

"No, we were really poor and the money that I made when I was touring with Amy was enough to buy them a new house. Now I'm playing in bars and stuff but I send home all the money that I make." Jeremy was usually the quiet one but he didn't like the tone of the woman.

She touched his arm like she was comforting him. "I'm not saying that what you do isn't important and it is a good deed but if you studied hard you could seek for something more stable."

"Going to college would give me a piece of paper while my parents starve and I rather not eat for days but do something that I love and send all the little money that I make back home so that my parents have something to eat every day."

Camille's experience helped her send out a small smile. "That's very valiant of you."

He went back to his taciturn ways.

She found the rest of them outside gathered around by the pool playing their instruments and making notes on paper sheets. "I think this is what they call a _jam_." She tried to mingle easily into the environment.

One by one they all stopped their movements and went quiet.

"Am I interrupting the secret makings of a song?" She tried to be funny.

They all awkwardly smiled at her.

"It would be bad if I heard something that is still unedited, right?" She carried on with a silly showcase of delight.

"Yes ma'am." Tyler answered serious.

It dried her attempt to be easy and the awkwardness rose up to a strange mood so she ended up walking to the other side of the pool and sitting on a chair, adjusting it to hide from the strong sun under a parasol.

"_Ma'am_?" Matt whispered at Tyler.

He shrugged. "She's like _old_."

Matt frowned. "She's 25, pinhead."

"She is?" Tyler slid the sunglasses down his nose, he wouldn't give her less than 40.

"She's a year younger than Klaus is." Matt went back to the tune that he was working on.

Tyler did the same with his Spanish guitar while Jesse was working on something on his own.

But Tyler couldn't concentrate. "Really, 25?" He wasn't convinced.

"Dude, let it go." Jesse only said between teeth, he was terrified that she could hear it and feel inclined to speak to them again.

"English men are weird." Tyler ran his fingers through the strings of his guitar, he was confused with Klaus' engagement, it was all too... clean.

* * *

The tournament was on a lunch break, therefore they had all moved to a cocktail garden party where Caroline was introduced to a lot of people, all of them men and happy to shake hands with a beautiful girl wearing a giant smile and a colorful sundress.

"Lexi was gushing a lot about your vocals yesterday." Maverick said with a blunt lowering of his eyes down to Caroline's legs.

She remained cool and stoic in her joy. "I have a Cd to show it." She looked around for her missing manager, it would be great if he showed up now that she was so at ease with the CEO of EMI.

"I wouldn't mind listening to that." Another man neared them.

Caroline opened up her smile, Klaus was not where he was supposed to be and she was running out of small talk. "Good things come to those who wait and we are all waiting." She had a tiny laugh at the end.

They found her adorable and chuckled a bit but she was losing their attention and instead of others coming to join the group they were starting to drift away.

Thankfully before they all steered away Klaus walked in and handed her a glass of champagne.

"I hope I haven't missed much, I was setting up the mood." He subtly winked at her as a soft voice filled the background.

"Is that…" She stared at him.

"I've provided the club management with some tasteful choice of music." He addressed the men. "I always did find the direct approach the best route to take and since we are talking about Caroline, I figured it would be better to listen to her while we do it."

As he expected a few executives were visibly intrigued, there was always the usual shark who was here only for the shrimp canapés and the champagne, unwilling to get involved with work at all but he could distinguish a few interested ears moving closer to the speakers.

Caroline's heart was racing out of normality and she gulped down a huge intake of alcohol with a crazy mix of emotions sprawling in all directions inside of her, she was excited to listen to her voice but she was monumentally worried about the main group's reaction as well.

Maybe it was a good sign that no one was shouting to have the music removed from the fancy party but on the other hand no one was particularly acting as if they were impressed by it.

"You have a nice recorded voice." Maverick said.

Caroline found it weird that that was meant to be a good thing. "Thank you." She kept the glass close to her lips.

"I'd like to listen to more…" He looked at Klaus. "Set a meeting back in New York with Lexi." He walked away without looking back at Caroline.

"Is that good?" Caroline whispered at Klaus, she didn't expect him to be bouncing up and down but she couldn't even tell if he was the slightest keyed up about it.

"It could be better." He sounded far from happy.

Caroline felt her shoulders fall a little, things weren't what he expected and it was extremely hard for her to see the glimpse of disappointment now on his face, the rest of the big names in the executive industry proceeded to speak among themselves about golf instead of paying attention to the guest couple.

Perhaps he was more used to this and that's why his face went back to impenetrable but Caroline was wrinkling her nose as the unwanted sting of fresh tears made an alarming appearance in her eyes.

The songs changed and her voice carried away flawlessly, the canapés changed as well which caused the big conversation to reach a halt and it was during this time that Enzo rushed to meet up with Caroline.

"Sorry gorgeous, I was on the phone." He grabbed a glass on the way to her and pointed to the sound reaching them from above. "Is that you?"

She only nodded.

"That's really good." He gave his opinion.

For the first time Caroline wanted to agree with Klaus, maybe Enzo wasn't that good of ear.

"They are playing hard balls." Enzo spoke to Klaus this time.

"I was prepared for it." Klaus hoped to shut Enzo up with one swift take.

"As soon as you walk away your phone will start ringing." Enzo still felt the need to drop his opinion.

"We are going to enjoy the party for a little longer and if you don't want to end your day fetching for your teeth on the garden, you will walk away." Klaus burned a scowl at Enzo.

He held his eyes almost closed. "I see what you are trying there mate, by playing casual about the meeting you give the impression that you already have what you came here for so the pressure is on them because if one makes a move then they will all jump on it."

"Keep your mouth shut." Klaus hissed with a tiny inching at Enzo.

Caroline had been attentive to the big group and she saw her chance coming when Maverick walked away. "I have to go to the bathroom." She left with the first excuse that came to mind but paced back rapidity. "Try not to kill each other." She warned the two fuming men before shooting in a small race.

She had to put extra speed to her feet but she caught up to the large bald and fat man just as he was starting his walk through a peaceful part of the rose garden, Caroline realized that Enzo stole her flower from here and she sighed offended but there wasn't time to waste with that and she called out for the man she was targeting for a private talk.

Maverick turned around interested in her initiative.

"Can we talk for a moment alone?" Caroline softly asked him.

"You have me alone and captivated." He warmly said.

His voice and body posture had changed a bit since the brief words he exchanged with Klaus but Caroline decided that that was good and she smiled encouraged by it. "I wanted to ask if you could reconsider the offer you gave us earlier."

"You don't want another meeting to decide your future?" Maverick slowed down his pacing.

"I was hoping to leave the Hamptons with a clearer answer." She confessed.

"These things take their time to solve my dear." He moved his arm and rested his hand over her shoulder.

Caroline froze with the touch but tried to shake it of in her mind. "My manager has invested a lot of money and time in this and I am ready to record a kick ass album and to put it out there now, not in two weeks or two months or two years. I am ready now." She fearlessly stated her claim.

"Can you guarantee me that you are absolutely ready and that you will be a good investment?" He lowered his hand to the middle of her back.

Caroline's fire reeled down as she saw nothing but malice in his eyes. "You own the company so it's up to you to make the big decisions and if you signed me now you wouldn't have to wait for another meeting to do it then." She started rambling because he wasn't stopping his hand. "Because yes, I am ready. To sing." She narrowed her eyes at him and moved.

When she pulled away from him he reacted with an icing of his smile. "You are just another one in the infinite crowd of pretty faces and nice legs, you have a nice voice but if you want to show me some other talent that would convince me without a doubt…" He licked his lips. "I have a little time before the tournament starts again."

Repulsed she had a step backwards and away from him.

"Don't you want to be famous? I'll call you a star while you do a little work…" He unzipped his pants.

Brassily she slapped him right across the face. "Go sanitize that filthy mind of yours."

Infuriated he reached for a forceful grab of her arm but he merely grazed her skin before he was yanked away from her by Klaus, his treatment was harsher than Caroline's and Maverick was sent to the ground clutching a throbbing face.

"I'm going to sue you." He yelled enraged as his hand became red with blood that was gushing out from his nose.

Klaus was going to hit him again but Caroline stepped in and pulled his arm before scooping in and clashing against his chest to further stop his rage.

"Let him go Klaus. Just let him bleed on the ground and let's get out of here before he attracts an avalanche of witnesses to testify against you."

He looked at her as if he couldn't care less about that.

"Klaus, please listen to me. Let's just leave." She asked him.

Maverick was moaning on the ground and Klaus eyed him with his blood boiling and an itching fist but gradually did as she asked and walked away with her.

Caroline was shaking her head all the way to the parking lot but she only started ranting when they were about to reach his car.

"Are you out of your frigging mind?" She stopped to scream right on his face.

"For defending your honor?" He gritted his teeth as soon as he voiced the words.

Caroline felt a flustering heat take over her cheeks. "I don't need a saving hero."

"I shall remember that the next time that I see a man mistreating you." He walked around her.

"There won't be a next time because you just broke the nose of the only option we had. Everyone else hated me."

"They did not hate on you." He raised his voice enervated. "This is exactly like the walking back stage of politics. They only show interest when no one is watching, that way they don't have to offer more than what they want. It takes patience and a load of negotiation but your strut after the front horse showed how desperate we are for income and a good contract."

"Well, I didn't know that!" She threw her arms in the air.

"Because you don't listen to me, I told you yesterday that I needed you to refrain and let me do my work."

"You didn't tell me exactly what you were planning." Exasperated she stomped her foot hard.

"You need to trust me." He placed enough space between the sentence and his next step towards her.

She kept her eyes narrowed and her voice hard. "I do."

"You stormed away to convince a pervert that you deserved an opportunity, what did you think that it would happen?"

She snapped loudly and vehemently all over again. "I didn't expect him to ask me to get on my knees."

"Most of the men present on that cocktail today have one or two stories of assault and sex with underaged girls. They misuse their power daily."

"You need to start telling me things." She looked at him furious. "I had no idea that you were bringing me to the local creep concentration."

"I do know about their existence and I can't do anything about it but what I can do is protect you, which I have vouched to do from the start." His voice reached the highest pitch yet. "That included keeping you with me at all times."

"I wanted to make you proud. I thought that you were disappointed when none of them came to talk to us about a contract and I wanted to give you something good to celebrate, I wanted to get that contract for you."

"Since when do you take upon yourself to do my job?"

"Since you kissed me and everything stopped being so _professional_, _professional_, _professional_." She hissed out all the ways that her mind was working.

"I know how good you are and nothing will cloud my judgment and regardless of what happened last night I would still fight off any man who wrongly placed a finger on you."

"Ugh!" She closed her eyes and balled her hands into fists. "We are two morons screaming at each other in the parking lot and I'm done making a scene." She marched to his car and waited for him to unlock it.

There was a heavy breathing inside of the car for a long moment before they looked at each other, confined to this space now and aware of how they were just steaming out all the tension that existed between them they slowly cracked into a smile and even a soft laugh before they looked away from each other.

"Now that I've successfully ruined my shots at making it big… do you need someone to drive a tractor at your property back in England?" She spoke softly this time.

He laughed staring at the wheel. "I don't own a farm Caroline."

"What do you mean? I read that it was a huge property."

"Were you raised in a farm, love?" He looked at her amused.

"I don't come from _Smallville_ where all the farms exist, I come from another town where we had more waterfalls than houses."

He smiled obviously onto something and started the car for a special drive.

* * *

Caroline enjoyed the landscape quietly and she kept her speech to only a few admiring sounds but she didn't hold back when he directed the car to a dirt road that was leading to a massive property right on the outskirts of the Hamptons.

She could see a horse freely walking on a field to her left and as they neared the big house she spotted the vast vineyard in the right.

"Is your property like this?" She asked him with sparkling blue eyes.

"I have more horses and our vineyard is only to produce the wine that we consume but now you have a candid notion." He parked in a lavish driveway.

Caroline wasn't used to all this luxury and remained glued to the car after she stepped out of it, he smiled going around the car and taking her hand.

"Francesco is an old friend from my homeless days, he married well and moved here with his wealthy wife. She died a few years ago and he inherited everything."

She gazed at him as they went up a large number of steps that led to the front door. "You have all these unexpected friends coming out of your ears."

He laughed but held on to her hand knowing that he would sooth her by doing that and more on a selfish note, to keep feeling her skin on his.

Francesco was a lively short man with curly black hair and a funny way of talking but Caroline liked him on the spot, she especially liked that he had this genuine happiness for seeing Klaus again.

"I still have that bottle reserved." Francesco looked up at Klaus with a pointy aiming of his finger.

Then he turned his attention towards Caroline and tucked his chest with a hand before bowing for her. "It's a pleasure to open my home to such a beauty."

Caroline did her best to hold back a teasing giggle. "Do you say that often?"

"How did you guess?" Mischievously he smirked at her.

"They call it women intuition." She said with a mocking stillness.

He laughed surprisingly louder than she expected from a man with such a delicate body structure. "I'm Francesco, the jolly man."

"I'm Caroline, the giggling mess." She laughed with him.

She had that entire natural charm about her and the two of them wandered off through a guided tour of the house enthralled in a tale about history and how Francesco turned a small family vineyard into one of the most profitable businesses in the world.

Naturally Klaus was increasingly falling behind until he was alone in a room foundling over his phone and he even sat on a sofa entertained with emails and messages, right up to the moment when Caroline's legs showed up in front of his eyes.

He looked up to find her scolding him with her hands around her waist.

"Seriously?"

"Yes…" He took a venturous route with this one.

"You drove me here to show the property of your friend and now you are blending into the decoration while he's trying to seduce me."

"If you poke him in the forehead with a finger he will tip over." Klaus assured her.

She softly laughed while sitting next to him.

He had a small dimpled smiled for her but visibly urging to go back to his phone.

"Klaus…" She sighed.

The phone went inside of his pocket but his will was to stay in the living room undisturbed. "My brother Kol is the one who has the entire fraternization under his belt. I'm not very…" He circled his finger a little. "… social."

"You have friends so we have proof that people like you." She started of cautious. "But for example, Francesco said that he hasn't seen you since his wedding, that you exchange phone calls or messages but he hasn't seen you in years. It's like you live your life like you handle your managing, once it gets too close you pull the plug."

Klaus forced his teeth tight, she could see his face muscles working in strain because of how hard the truth hit him and she smiled while slowly motioning her hand across his face.

With a gentle sweetness she traced the harsh lines of his face and like she was the carrier of a magic touch she brought some softness to his features as he eased up into a smiling hint.

"It's not that hard to relate to people Klaus and you can practice with me."

"It sounds like I'm not going to enjoy this very much." He responded lukewarm.

"I only want to bring some light into your life." Softly she whispered with a smile but just as she pulled back her hand.

"You may have noticed that I'm not the chipper sort." His smile wouldn't have come honest so he didn't go for one.

Again her hand gained a life but this time she rested it over his shirt, right where she memorized the location of his scar. "This doesn't have to dictate who you are Klaus, you are not him."

There was a gallop of feelings that blurred his sight and tightened his throat and in a jolt Klaus stood up for the sofa so that he could face away from her.

"I'm sorry… I didn't mean to upset you." She swallowed hard, not from fear but from the emotions that affected her as well.

"He's with me everyday and no matter the distance I put between myself and the memories of what I had to endure at his hands…" He forced his pain to retrieve back to that dark place inside of him, the one he didn't show anyone.

"Think of how angry and annoyed he would be to know that you surpassed him, that you're this really big and famous man, known around the world." She paced a bit towards him. "That you made a name for yourself. Everyone knows who Klaus Mikaelson is but no one, no one speaks of you as the son of Mikael Mikaelson."

Slowly he turned around and they remained there looking at each other with a big number of things that they wanted to tell one another, on the other hand Caroline was more on the spontaneous side so she simply walked over to him and laced her arms around him for a hug.

She locked her arms around him tight and rested her check over his shoulder.

Klaus had no idea how to react but she wouldn't budge until he did something. "Are you going to hug me until I'm happy?" He circled his arms around her.

She warmly snuggled against his body. "Some say that my happiness is contagious."

Softly he gave in, only Caroline could make him smile like this.

* * *

Francesco was joyful to see the couple. "You've convinced him to take part in the real world?" He joked as Klaus walked his way without a distraction in his hands.

"I have very special persuasion techniques." Caroline bumped against Klaus' shoulder, she intended to hug him more often now that she found his soft spot.

"Im here for the wine." He kept his hard game on cue.

Francesco plucked a couple of grapes from one of the seemingly endless vine rows and handed them for a taste. "This year it will be a good harvest."

"They are so sweet." Caroline adored how good they tasted.

"Let me show you how we transform that into some fine wine." Francesco then carried out to describe all the process of wine making.

He explained how he still had his grapes hand-picked and then sorted out by quality, he didn't like machines and he didn't mind if it did cost him more money this way.

Francesco then led them to the winery where he told Caroline that the grapes were treated traditionally still and that after they separated the stems the grapes were dumped into a vessel where fermentation happened next.

Caroline was deeply distraught to know that the red grapes were foot trodden to extract color and other components from the skins, she really wanted to do that but sadly the harvest only occurred in a specific time of the year.

When she launched a puppy-stare at Klaus he laughed and promised to take her to a harvest one day.

The last stop was an underground cellar where there was nothing but barrel halls upon barrel halls, it was definitely impressive and Caroline loved it all, it was different from the usual image that she had in her mind of halls stacked up with dusty bottles.

Francesco disappeared into a hall leaving Klaus and Caroline alone for a few minutes.

Caroline grabbed the chance. "Thank you for this."

He looked at her inquisitive.

"My truly exciting life before I met you consisted of singing 4 Non Blondes in the local Karaoke bar on my Saturday nights and now I'm inside of a winery in the Hamptons."

"I hope I haven't tainted your pure heart with this prelude of how the rich spend their days."

She didn't get his affirmation. "What do you mean?"

"Gold sparkles but it hides a tremendous view to a decadent and putrid world." He repeated what he constantly heard from Camille.

Caroline cocked an eyebrow. "I'm not that innocent Klaus and I know that many bag things happen in our realm but it's not that different from what happens in any other part of the world. I was almost raped and I knew the name of everyone that lived in my town." She crossed her arms as a shield. "I'm out here in the wild but I've never felt so safe in my life and I don't feel exposed because I know that you will make only good decisions based on your upbringing and that your personality is way too strong to be influenced by any of the things that surround us."

"It has started to waver a tad." He admitted that she was an influence on him.

"You can't kiss me again." She cautioned him with a low voice.

He swayed his upper body for an effortless inch towards her and he deeply looked into her eyes, he wanted to kiss her again, to press her sweet lips and to have her responding with passion, it was the prevailing thought in his mind and he only broke away from her because it didn't feel right to do things this way.

The thought that he couldn't do this to her stopped him all the other times and that's what he had to cling to again.

Caroline was partly happy that he listened to her plea because she would have answered him ardently if he touched her lips again, she would have pressed herself against him and tangled her fingers with his soft curls while moaning against his rich lips.

"I've brought that bottle that I was saving for so long." Francesco emerged with a dusty bottle in his hand.

Caroline smiled, so there was a dusty item after all.

Klaus' cell phone started to ring and he oozed a huge grin. "We might just have something to celebrate as well." He turned the phone to Caroline so that she could see who was calling him.

* * *

Lexi's glare resembled two bullets that she would gladly lodge in his head. "I knew you to be unstoppable but I had no real grasp on how mad you are."

He had nothing but easiness as he pulled a chair for Caroline to sit and he smiled at Lexi when he took his seat next to Caroline. "I was raised to respect women, if you have a problem with that you should call my brother Elijah."

"This isn't the time to play the charming fool."

"You called me, Lexi." He pushed her with a smirk, he was in this for too long to know that she didn't ask for a meeting to simply rant over the treatment that he gave Maverick.

She exhaled with hardness. "He's the CEO but I have a lot of influence over who gets picked among the new artists and luckily for you I do think that Caroline has talent."

Klaus moved his hand under the table searching for Caroline's. "Luck doesn't have anything to do with it, sweetheart."

"Smug bastard." Lexi grumbled.

Klaus squeezed Caroline's fingers as a warning for what was coming. "Why are you really here Lexi?"

"Universal is formally doing research on Caroline's background." She crossed her arms and leaned back on her chair.

Klaus' phone started ringing precisely at that second and he looked at the screen, then at Lexi with another big smile forming. "They are not the only ones." He left the phone on the table so that she could see the name of another big player from another big label.

Lexi popped her pen and scribbled a number on a piece of paper, then she moved it near him. "With all the buzz that Katy Perry is making, it's the right time to launch our own blond version on the market."

Caroline's eyes widened beyond her control when she saw the figures that Lexi was offering but Klaus squeezed her fingers again.

"That's what Katy spends on her wigs."

To Caroline's horror, Klaus pushed back the paper.

Lexi added a zero to the amount. "Katy just had a video that reached a billion views on YouTube." She glided the paper to Klaus. "And you just hit my boss in the face."

"You should throw another offer just for that extraordinary action." Klaus didn't move the paper but he wasn't openly accepting anything either.

"What do you want Klaus?" They were now entering a part that had nothing to do with money and Lexi was open to negotiate.

"Caroline will have full control over her songs. I want her to have artistic control." Klaus demanded.

Caroline wasn't an expert with the technical terms but she knew that he was talking about freedom to write her songs and to choose what she would sing and she liked that, gently she squeezed his hand.

He smiled but Lexi was forfeiting early in the game.

"I can't promise you that. She's green Klaus and EMI has a name to stand for so that first album needs to sell well…" She shrugged. "You know how the circus works, give us a few tracks to fill in the spaces but let us run the arena and put our songs out there first."

Before an answer, he wrapped his fingers softly around Caroline's, it was hers the final word to hold.

With a decisive hand she pushed the piece of paper back to Lexi herself. "My songs or no songs." She added to the move.

Lexi shook her head with a disbelief crossing her face. "I'm sorry that you are wasting such a good opportunity." She grabbed her bag and left the table without looking back.

Caroline looked at Klaus shaken.

"I'm proud of you." He smiled at her soothingly.

"I'm a step away from singing in the streets."

"I will negotiate the best spots and manage the coins that are thrown at you."

Caroline burst into a silly laughter, finding him silly but all sorts of perfect.

"I'm sorry for interrupting but I need a word with the two of you."

The sitting couple looked up at a tall man staring at them with a casual smile.

"My name is John Gilbert and I'm currently in charge of miss Taylor Swift's career." He sat across the couple. "I was at the bar the other night when you were singing and I took the liberty of recording a short video for Taylor…" He focused on Caroline first. "She adored it as much as I did."

Caroline glanced at Klaus briefly. "Thanks but I don't sing country…"

John directed his next approach to Klaus. "Miss Swift has recently acquired a few shares at the record company that represents her and she has taken a different direction with her work, there's a new policy that instigates diversity and Miss Swift is on the scout for new artists. Now, I've spoken to Marcel Gerard and he tells me that your client refused a sure hit because it went against her scrupulous and I got my hands on this…" He showed Klaus the demo that he left back at the Golf club. "Something tells me that Caroline writes her own songs."

Caroline used all her strength to squeeze Klaus' hand.

"That's a lot of work to hire an unknown artist." Klaus was not convinced yet, not even remotely.

"When Taylor wants something, she's relentless." John stated. "And she thinks that Caroline is exactly what she is looking for. Fresh blood, gorgeous and with a candid voice, interesting to watch and relatable to listen to if she writes her own material, not to mention that she has some nice legs." John lifted his hands. "That was entirely her words by the way."

Klaus turned his eyes to Caroline, she was nervous but that irrefutable fire to say yes was shimmering in her eyes.

"Maybe she sees herself in Caroline, I really don't know but what I do know is what I can offer you." The number that John wrote on a napkin was unquestionably smaller than what Lexi offered prior to him but he added in big letters the words that made all the difference.

**Full creative control.**

* * *

"I didn't hear you arrive." Camille rushed to give Klaus a kiss.

He was standing by the mantel and admiring the way that the fire was dancing inside of the restricted space and he didn't move a muscle, not even with all her efforts to kiss him, lastly she settled with a peck on his cheek.

"How did the big meeting turn out?" She tried to show interest.

"It was a bloody mess." He chuckled amused.

It disconcerted her. "Was it all bad news then?"

"Far from it." He remained amused.

Her confusion was visible but she spotted the bottle on top of the mantel and reached for it. "This is some really expensive wine." She cleared the dust from the year marked on the bottle astonished that Klaus had spent so much money on such a lavish brand of wine.

"It belongs to Caroline." He swiftly retrieved the bottle from her hand. "It was a gift from my friend Francesco."

Camille's blood fled from her face and she became pale. "I asked you to take me there once…"

Klaus sighed as he restored the bottle to its rightful place, he almost sighed again when he looked back at her. "It happened without planning on it." He hated how everything was like a detailed report with her.

Camille gulped down dryly, she could see his annoyance prickling out of his hard skin.

They both looked back as Caroline's heals announced her walk towards them, she showed up wearing high stilettos and a gorgeous emerald-green dress, her hair was beautifully caught on the sides and trapped behind her head.

"I'm going out to have dinner with the band." She managed to say before they barged in behind her making their usual chaotic noise.

"We are going out to celebrate but we can totally make room in the van for Mr. Dude and Mrs. Dude." Tyler held two fingers pointed at Klaus and Camille.

Camille gave him a frowned unpleased look but Klaus surprisingly laughed.

"I gently decline Lockwood but Caroline needs to be home before dawn and stay away from swimming pools." He delivered a warning.

Tyler saluted him most serious. "She's my responsibility tonight."

"I need someone to be responsible for you then." Klaus' strike came swiftly.

Jesse and the others roared.

"Look at that… you made a joke." Tyler left with a side-look at Klaus.

He shared a small smile with Caroline but a longer look until she waved goodbye and left after the boys.

"That leaves us alone for tonight and I couldn't be happier with that." Camille instantly went for the kill and cupped Klaus' neck attempting to bring him closer to her for a proper kiss.

He froze her heated actions by taking her wrists and slowly taking her hands away from his body. "I have many messages to attend to and just as many calls to return because of Caroline's contract."

"Contract?" Camille remained closely to him.

"Nevertheless I still have to check a few other options which will take me most of the night." He answered vaguely.

"Okay…" She breathed out as he moved away from her. "I will check in with a few of my patients and wait for you in bed."

"There's no need." Klaus said before exiting the room. "I will probably be occupied until dawn."

As he left Camille closed her eyes and stroked her forehead worried, when she opened her eyes they landed right on the wine bottle and with rancor she moved it to the edge of the mantel letting it drop until it shattered against the floor.

* * *

Inside of the office Klaus dialed a number on his phone to make a call, it was ringing a couple of times before the calm voice answered from the other side.

"Yes, it's me." Klaus rolled his eyes. "No, I'm not dying or in great peril."

From the other side a series of questions about his well-being were asked before he was given the chance to speak freely.

"Elijah… I'm calling off my engagement with Camille."

* * *

**Soundtrack**:

Marvin Gaye –_ Charlie Puth feat Megan Trainor _

You gotta be ('99 Mix) - _Des'ree_

1000 Sundowns - _Emma Louise_

I want you to want me – _Letters to Cleo _


	10. Intermission

**10 months earlier **

"I don't know where I am." Klaus exasperated on his phone. "On a minuscule town in Virginia." He corrected himself as he walked by the typical town square with a population sign next to a bench.

_"What are you going to do now?"_ Camille asked worried.

"The car broke down just on the outskirts of town and the insurance can only send someone tomorrow morning to check on the possible damage." Klaus looked around for anything that resembled a Pub.

"_You need to stay in the car and maybe call the police._"

Klaus nodded. "Of course love, I also need to save up battery in case the coyotes show up and I need real help." He smiled spotting a promising possibility to acquire some alcohol.

"_If you won't take my concern seriously, I'm hanging up." _

"I will call you as soon as I find a room for the night." He eased up on his mockery and tried to end the call nicely.

"_I don't know why you felt the need to drive all the way to Tennessee alone." _Camille huffed.

Before the conversation turned uglier Klaus ended the call by saying that he saw a police station, instead he walked inside of a small bar with a modest decoration and more tables than customers.

"Hey there stranger, what will it be?" A spunky kid asked him while cleaning the counter.

"Your finest malt." Klaus eagerly asked. "And by finest I do mean the best."

The kid hesitated, then he frowned. "There's the Scotch that old Teddy used to drink before the doctor cut him off, the locals won't touch it because it's too expensive."

"It sounds marvelous." Klaus estimated, he really just wanted a drink.

"All righty then." The kid disappeared under the counter to get the infamous bottle.

Klaus had a minor look around himself, small places always had a peculiar feel to them.

"There you go." The kid dusted of the bottle. "Are you visiting someone?"

"I was passing through but my car broke down and it won't start so I've decided to spend the night here. Can you recommend a good bed and breakfast?"

"There's a fancy place 20 minutes from town but if you want to stay here for the night, there's a house five minutes away from the square that rents rooms, it's pink so you can't miss it."

"Thank you for your help." Klaus was sold on the drink as well, it was splendid.

The kid genuinely smiled before deviating his attention to the small stage.

Klaus wasn't even bothering as he was still processing the way that Camille just talked to him, the tone that she used to admonish him for taking a well-deserved break after relentlessly managing Adele right to the top of the pyramid.

It had been two very stressful and work loaded years and honestly he just had the need to leave it all behind him before he transitioned to his next client, at first Camille had been understanding but she fast tracked on that as soon as Klaus mentioned that he was planning on a road trip across the country.

"Hello my devoted audience."

Klaus interrupted his heavy thoughts to look at the stage, there was a girl sitting on a stool and hugging a guitar and she was literally thanking a couple of drunks, an old man sitting alone in a table, the young bartender and himself.

Taking that detail as something evidently normal and without further delay the blonde proceeded to start her performance.

It was a simple acoustic version of some worn-out song from the 80's but the blonde had a candid clean voice and she made it sound current, she was gifted with the guitar as well and Klaus turned on his seat to better face the pretty girl on stage.

"_Spending my time_

_Watching the days go by_

_Feeling so small, I stare at the wall_

_Hoping that you think of me too_

_I'm spending my time…"_

She carried on from the chorus effortlessly, there was this indescribable easiness about the girl, she was singing like music was part of her veins and essence, like it was all coming from this focal point inside of her where music existed along with butterflies and flowers.

Klaus smiled just as about the same time that she did and it was only a reaction to her, it came because she did it and that meant more than any mundane human could think.

"What's her name?" Klaus asked the information-provider at hand.

"Caroline Forbes." The kid leaned over the counter. "She's the local star."

Perhaps it was regarded as a silly joke but to Klaus those words made all the sense, he looked back at the tiny stage already concluding that it was infinitely scarce for her talent.

He imagined a vast arena with a crowd fitting of her magnetism and an entire band backing her up, he had a clear image of all the working motion that would make her shine brighter than all the stars in the sky.

It was an hyperbole as big as they came but there was no other way with Klaus, it was either total indifference or absolute dedication when he saw someone with potential and the cheerful blonde with two fish-side braids and a weird combination of a summer dress with winter boots, had it.

With a final stroke of fingers across the strings she ended her song, she had a small sigh as the only noise echoing were the clapping efforts from the old man.

"Thank you so much, it's been rad." She giggled on her way to leave the stool.

"That was wonderful Caroline." Her devoted fan said as she went by his table.

"You're such a flirt Thomas." She teased him sweetly, irrevocably aware that she was bringing some joy into his wrinkled days.

Klaus kept his eyes on her as she came over the counter unimpressed by his presence.

"I'm going to have my break now, Britney Spears." The bartender handed her an apron before swiftly leaving.

She took the hit obviously softened up by the amount of times that she surely heard that same barb and laced the ends of her small apron around her waist with a humming tune still lingering in her lips.

"I enjoyed that very much." Klaus instigated her to look up at him.

Caroline shot her crystal-blue eyes at him. "I bet that you did."

"There's no need to be suspicious. I thoroughly did." He insisted.

She chuckled with a small shake of her head. "I'm not some fantasy that you are itching to scratch, so don't waste your time on cheap remarks. I'm not impressed by your accent and you will not seduce me enough for a random date before you leave my town."

Klaus retrieved a small card from his pocket. "I'm Klaus Mikaelson, I'm a notorious manager."

She laughed while skimming through the Introduction card. "That's a lot of hard work just to hit on girls."

"No love…" Klaus breezed out an amused smile. "I'm really a manager for artists."

Her eyes left the card to lock with his, she wasn't convinced or affected by his selling techniques. "And what do you want with me?"

"I want to make you famous."

Caroline burst into laughter, she richly shook with laughter and it lasted long enough for him to have his drink only waiting for her to ease up on the roar.

"You want to make me famous?"

The laughter hadn't been enough and she had the need to ask him word by word. "I think that you're good." Klaus kept his assertive tone.

"Only good?" Caroline scoffed offended.

"You could be sublime but that will take some work and my guidance." He was only blunt with her as well.

"I think that your drink is rotten." Caroline frowned.

"There's nothing askew, I promise that my interest comes from watching you on stage and I would very much like to work with you."

Caroline looked back at the small square with a stool and a Karaoke machine on the corner. "My stellar performance was enough to impress you…" She looked at the card again. "I don't believe a word that you're saying."

"Do your research and then call me love, I've recently ended a contract with an artist and I would like to get involved with someone as you."

"What's your reasons behind it?"

He smiled enthralled by how direct she was. "I can tell how much of a challenge you will be." He left money on the counter to pay for his drink and walked away with the same certainty of his words.

Caroline hit the card against her finger, he sounded weirdly honest although it was all so freakish to believe it. "Klaus Mikaelson." She read the name to herself, he sounded like royalty yet she had no idea who he was.

* * *

**Present time **

"I don't know this person!" Elijah ranted with a back and forth pacing that supported his manifestation of disapproval. "I don't recognize my astute brother in your actions." He opened his suit jacket with a steamy breath. "Canceling an engagement is not to take lightly like a concert that you need to postpone."

Klaus didn't measure Elijah's wrath and still delivered a sassy note. "Actually there's a mammoth amount of work when we are forced to stop a concert from happening, we have to appease a legion of disappointed fans, return the fees from the tickets and rearrange the artist's agenda completely."

Elijah held his eyes on Klaus with fury.

Klaus quietly leaned back on the sofa. "I just wanted to be clear about that."

"What about the fact that you made a promise to a dying man and that now you are shaming that vow by renouncing your bride."

Klaus narrowed his eyebrows with a sulk. "I promised Kieran that Camille would never be deprived of anything."

"You are refusing her of a husband." Elijah expressed aghast.

"I don't plan on putting a halt on her life, she's free to pursue another one to marry her."

Elijah gravely closed his eyes and covered his face with his hand. "I cannot take you for serious Niklaus, what has gotten into you?" He questioned Klaus with a direct look at him next.

"Everyone claims that this pledge to marry Camille was a mistake."

"And since when do you take into consideration what others think?"

"It's more than background noise when it's in unison."

Elijah sat next to Klaus with a sigh. "I admit that in the beginning I wasn't a fervent supporter of this betrothal myself but I am of the honor behind it. You can't end this pact that you have made with a man who took in when you needed."

"I didn't call you for permission Elijah."

Elijah bounced to his feet upset. "I will not allow you to do this. Camille is a calm girl and she will be a lovely wife and surely a devoted mother. She has established herself as a doctor and her view on life is always very insightful. She's a good woman Niklaus."

"It's settled then." Klaus opened his arms. "You will marry her."

"I am married and I love my wife very much." Elijah angrily spat out. "Is this behavior related in any way to your new client?"

Klaus remained silent and his eyes barely moved as Elijah started to shake his head.

"It was atypical that you invested so much, I should have come to New York sooner…" He closed his suit restoring the composure to his attire. "You've used your own money on her promotion and that should have been my alarm boost."

"I successfully achieved a contract for her with artistic freedom." Klaus beamed endlessly proud of himself. "I can tell you five artists in the world who have that privilege, Madonna is one of them."

"It's her first album Niklaus, if it fails they won't bother producing or marketing a second one so her freedom as it is results quite irrelevant."

"There's nothing irrelevant about Caroline." Klaus pressed.

There was a louder sigh from Elijah. "You are under the spell of a young infatuation… this will pass once you realize how much Camille has been a constant in your life." He smiled reassured that this was just a silly crush. "Camille is without a doubt the right influence in your life."

"Let me introduce you to Caroline." Klaus smirked.

* * *

Caroline was at the studio with Tyler, on the way back to New York she started playing around with her guitar, as he joined her in the studio this simple tune gained a life and they had a song half-developed.

It was that work session that Klaus and Elijah found when they arrived and with a cunning soul Klaus wisely kept their arrival discrete.

"_Mr. Play It Safe was afraid to fly_

_He packed his suitcase and kissed his kids goodbye_

_He waited his whole damn life to take that flight_

_And as the plane crashed down he thought_

_"Well isn't this nice..."_

_And isn't it ironic... don't you think_

_It's like rain on your wedding day_

_It's a free ride when you've already paid_

_It's the good advice that you just didn't take_

_Who would've thought... it figures…" _

Caroline sang what would be chorus once more and waited for Tyler's opinion.

"I like it a lot, I'm going to ask Matt to record it tomorrow so that we can see how it sounds on tape." He smiled widely at her. "Finally you will have a rock song on your album, so far you only have ballads."

"Ballads are pretty." Caroline narrowed her eyes at him.

"They are boring." Tyler grunted.

"You will have to get used to playing them." Caroline called dibs on a victory.

He resisted. "I'm going to download a list of pure rock tracks for you, we need to open those music limits of yours."

Caroline gasped extra loudly and with big drama. "Download?"

"From a site that pays artists." He said slowly acting as if she was the police.

Caroline laughed with the smallest drift to the glass where Klaus knocked to get her attention, she immediately left the booth although a bit on the cautious side because he was accompanied by an imposing presence in a suit.

Her lips formed a small smile as the man lowered his head the tiniest to greet her.

"Caroline, this is my brother Elijah." Klaus made the introduction.

Her smile grew immensely. "I'm so happy to meet you." She came closer with glowing eyes. "I had such a big image of how you would look like."

"Perhaps I haven't disappointed entirely." Elijah cordially said.

She easily had one of those effortless little laughs. "No you haven't and now I can see that Klaus isn't the only debonair man in the family."

Elijah sprinted out a smile but he touched his suit like he was flustered by the compliment.

"You are his favorite brother." Caroline jumped on the confession. "He has this huge admiration for you."

Elijah looked at Klaus surprised while the other Mikaelson used a glare to urge Caroline to be quiet.

"I find that odd considering how reserved about his feelings Niklaus is." Elijah spoke of only the truth that he knew.

"You have to take attention to the smallest details." Caroline's eyes searched for Klaus.

"Was that a new song that you were working on with Tyler?" He deflected.

Caroline playfully scolded him. "Like what he just did, did you see that?" She asked Elijah.

"Niklaus does not appreciate having all eyes on him unless he has asked for that honor." Elijah replied with a tamed smile.

"Aren't you going to hide behind your fancy phone?" Caroline teased him.

"And miss the nonsense being spewed about me?" He countered.

"You don't miss a thing of what happens around you."

"Even when I pretend that I do?"

"Ironic, that's the song that I'm working on." Caroline rolled her eyes before looking at Elijah. "Was he already this dreadful when he was young?"

He who had been attentive to the easy banter merely moved his lips into what could be a smile if he placed some effort into it. "In reality Niklaus was somewhat shy."

Caroline cocked an eyebrow to an extreme.

"He was a reserved child and later on he grew up to be a quiet young man who created his version of the world." Elijah was momentarily taken by his memories.

Klaus was happy that his phone started ringing. "I'm going to take this call outside, I beg you to stop embarrassing me." He asked Elijah.

"Obviously his temper has improved with the years." Elijah scoffed with a loud expel of air.

"I've never met anyone who dedicated so much of himself to create this fake detachment from life."

Elijah responded with a glassy stare.

She gently laughed knowing that she was thinking out loud. "But it's fun to see his reaction whenever I ignore all that and treat him like a normal person with flaws."

"My brother has some extraordinary qualities…"

He sounded offended but Caroline was too impulsive to step back. "I think that he's a genius but I don't see a reason to coddle him."

He patronized her with a smile. "Niklaus' past carries a weight that not many are able to comprehend."

"Everything that he accomplished so far was only to put space between what happened before and what he wanted for his life."

"You reckon that he stopped running from his history with our father?"

Caroline had a gentle nibble of her lower lip before answering him. "I don't know what goes on in Klaus' head Elijah but I know that I would like him to let go of what happened and actually enjoy the good life that he made for himself because he has all this money and properties and cars and he doesn't appreciate any of it, they are just collectable items to show his father this he's not an underachiever."

"Camille is a very humble girl and she will help him give good usage to his wealth once they get married. Which is happening soon." Elijah waited for her receptivity to the news.

"I only want him to be happy." Caroline turned away and joined Tyler who hadn't left the recording booth.

Elijah found Klaus in the hallway ending his call.

"I was about to go back inside." Klaus tried to read Elijah, he knew how easily Caroline conquered everyone.

"I have to leave, there are still many things that I need to do today but Katerina is arranging for a family dinner tonight and Kol and Bonnie will be there so please…" Elijah paced closer to him. "Make things right with your fiancée and bring her to the family gathering tonight."

"Are you trying to cross me on purpose?" Klaus asked him in a bad mood.

"Don't be discourteous, this idea of yours makes no sense and as your older brother I know what's best for you so this engagement will only have an end because tonight you are going to set a date for the wedding." It was a low demand and Elijah walked away convinced that Klaus would do the right thing.

* * *

"I will see you next week." Camille ended the session with a smile and handed the patient a note with the next appointment.

"Okay." He took the paper lethargically and left on the same spirit.

Camille wasn't sure if there was any progress with the man but he was one of those long cases that would need a lot of work and she was a fan of those complicated files.

"Hello." Klaus knocked on the door to call her notice.

"Nik!" She breathed out excited to see him, it was a rarity that he would visit her at work.

"Do you have a few minutes that you could spare? I need to discuss something with you."

"I'm free for the rest of the day." She quickly went over to him so that she could kiss him but she only grazed his lips as he pulled back to deny her the intimacy. "What is it that you wanted to talk to me?"

"I'm not going to carry on with our engagement." He spoke without hurry and his body followed the motion of his words. "It's for the best that we go our separate ways." He placed himself at a greater distance from her but kept his eyes determined on the same level than hers.

"I'm not going anywhere." She stuttered across her shock.

"I will be moving out of the suite but you can stay there for now, I will provide you with a permanent residence when I have the opportunity."

Camille shook her head. "You can't end everything between us just like that."

"I am keeping my promise to your uncle untainted and I will leave you with enough money to live a comfortable life." He assured her in a neutral, almost cold tone of voice.

"You are treating me like I'm a pet that you promised to look after…" She was mostly incredulous now. "This is because of that kid isn't it? She won you over with her skimpy little dresses and her lighthearted way of living."

"I already told Elijah about my decision."

She widened her eyes, it was official then. "I won't let you ruin your life over some twit."

Klaus planned on a civilized ending but her constant insults directed at Caroline shortened his intentions.

"Wait!" Camille grabbed his hand as soon as he turned away from her. "Let's talk about this."

"I've made my decision." He stated.

"I'm in this as well." She shouted with a shriek.

"And I'm not leaving you out cold Camille. I'm ending things instead of prolonging something that has withered long ago."

"No…" She cupped his face. "This is only a bad chapter in our lives but everything will go back to normal as soon as you leave Caroline and take another client."

Klaus took her wrists to further take her hands down from his face. "I'm not going to end my connection with Caroline."

Camille's tears stormed to her eyes. "She's just a client and you don't stay with them for long."

"There's no love on my behalf for you Camille, there's respect and gratitude towards your uncle's memory but none of that is enough to steer me away from my decision."

"What about what we lived as a couple? Our conversations and the times that we've been intimate?" She agonized noticing how there was no reaction in his eyes at all, it was as if it all had been indifferent for him.

"I'm unable to give you more than the minimal that I've given you so far." He was amiable with his confession, it's how he genuinely felt.

"But you are willing to give _her_ more?"

"If you insist on bringing her into this discussion then perhaps it's safe to assume that I no longer have a reason to stay here."

"You can't leave me." Camille started crying.

It froze momentarily his exit but Klaus remained unwavering about the rest. "I won't stay."

"You're scared." Camille rearranged her thoughts and controlled her tears. "Your parents had a horrible marriage and you are afraid of history repeating itself."

"I am nothing like my father." Klaus coldly answered back.

"You won't be happy with her." Camille voiced as a bad omen.

"I'm not happy now." He finally walked out of her office.

* * *

Caroline didn't like the last versus of her new song and she used her pen to cross a few words. "… _It's meeting the man of my dreams and having to let him go_…" She wrinkled her lips searching for the right words. "… _and then meeting his beautiful wife_." She liked how that sounded better and replaced the last sentence.

There was no time to rehearse it on the guitar because someone was knocking on the front door and Caroline rushed to see who the visitor was.

"You didn't even ask who was at the door." Klaus gravely eyed her as she briskly opened the door for him.

"This is Stefan's house, not many people would be able to get through the really bulky doorman downstairs." She tucked her waits with a hand.

"We are in New York so you would be surprised."

As he stepped inside of the apartment Caroline noticed the huge envelope that he was holding. "What is that?"

Klaus smirked at her. "Something that Santa has left on my doorstep."

"Is that my contract?" She yelped with a little jump.

"Could be." He teased her with a slow raising of his eyebrows.

Caroline covered her mouth with her fingers and eyed him with wide glistening eyes. "I want to see it." She said behind her fingers.

"I don't know if I want to show it to you." He played with her emotions.

"Klaus, I have to see it."

"I don't know if you are ready to see it, it's very large."

Caroline narrowed her eyes at him. "You are being dirty and I just want to see my contract."

He gave in with a chuckle and removed the stack of papers from inside the envelope.

Caroline squealed and sprinted to the sofa where she sat with her legs crossed, she concentrated on that first page for several minutes until she lowered the paper to look at Klaus. "I don't understand a word of what I just read."

Klaus laughed and asked for the paper, Caroline handed them over and scooped closer to him for a close look.

"This is basically a draft, first they tell us what they want and then we demand all the changes that we want." He underlined the first lines for her. "This is the legal introduction with nothing worthy of wasting time, it's merely the designation of the record label and the rights that they own to produce and distribute music." He moved to the second page where he immediately made a few notes. "They assumed that you would have a legal representative making all the decisions for you but I want your name in here."

Caroline smiled due to the beautiful way that he wrote her name but her eyes frantically moved trying to keep up with his notes.

"They stipulated a mandatory number of records…" He crossed the number 2 firmly. "They want to oblige you to put out two records a year."

"That's very little time to work decently on anything." She said aghast.

"One album every two years?" He knew how impossible it would be to negotiate no time limit.

She agreed with a smile. "Sounds reasonable."

He didn't touch the next pages because they were only informative paragraphs about the main policy of the label.

Caroline knew that he reached an important page because he licked his lips and leaned back on the sofa, she tilted her head attempting to read a bunch of pricey words that confused her.

"They are claiming a right to your image." Klaus explained.

"The label would dictate the way that I have to dress from now on?" That much she realized by reading a selective passage.

"Good luck with forcing Caroline Forbes to do anything." He obviously crossed all that nonsense.

Her smile reached her eyes and she pointed at a little corner in the page. "Write how perfect I already am."

"Over my dead unaffected body." He had fun pushing her.

"I don't know what this is." Caroline pointed at something that claimed 50% of profit.

He underlined the rights to her image again. "That means that they will decide a certain look for you and that by contract you have to always appear in public dressed under that previously accorded look. The next part is about owning rights over the image that you will sell, either if they make you out as the girl next door to the vixen who looks innocent but is naughty at heart." He thought about an example. "Take Lana Del Rey, there's an image associated to her and if she had a contract like this it means that if she showed up now with shaved hair and dressed as a sailor she would have to pay her label for the damage of her image."

"She would be breaking a contract that both sides agreed early on."

"Exactly. Which is something that sadly many artist disregard at first, they start off thinking that it's tremendously appealing to have a certain image and to stick to it because that will bring them attention but they forget that that implies they are giving up on the right to simply buy a different coat or change their haircut."

"Everything changes so fast in our world and we get tired so fast of everything that I don't know if any artist could make that contract last."

"The guitarist of AC/DC hasn't changed his outfit in years."

"Yeah but that's on stage and not how he looks like when he's out on a date."

"Are you planning on going on stage wearing a school girl's outfit?"

"No." She twirled her finger around a lock of hair lazily. "But I still have my cheerleader outfit."

"It's a myth that all men get turned on by that."

"That's because you come from a country where they don't take cheerleading serious."

"Oh the sexy librarian…" He wiggled his eyebrows.

They laughed a bit silly but ingeniously making the best of the moment, she was very close to him and the heat from his body was reaching her entirely, it was the same with his smell and she adored that things had come thus far between them, months ago he would take the initiative of moving away from her.

"… percentage means that they want to exploit everything that we sell based on your image, from posters to backpacks with your face."

Caroline nodded pretending that she had been listening to everything and looked at the paper only to instigate him to keep talking, she wasn't getting a single word because she was furtively looking up to his features but he didn't have to know that.

"So that's a big no." He faced her absolutely convinced that she was paying attention to his careful explanation.

"Yes." Caroline sighed, it was a colossal no because he was promised to another woman.

"You appear gloom." He noticed.

"Because we still have many pages to go." She guided her eyes once more to the contract.

"A drink would make it easier." He scanned for Stefan's bar.

"I'm on it." She shot like a bullet towards the kitchen.

Klaus took his jacket and pulled his sleeves up, this was going to take longer than expected as he found himself disagreeing with every new page but his experience led him through a swift reading and he only paused as Caroline arrived with a little tray full of cheese and red wine.

"I would have never imagined." He quickly launched a tease.

She handed him a glass. "It's this about the stinky cheese?"

"I made you like something that you initially opposed strongly." He grinned smugly.

"It's the only thing that I found in the kitchen and don't gloat so much because I'm eating these." She showed him a bag of crunchy Cheetos.

"Such a waste with wine." He complained.

"I'm still so bummed that Francesco's bottle fell from the mantel like that… and no one heard a thing." She placated her grief with a handful of the cheese snack.

"Once we sign this contract, I will buy you a bottle to celebrate."

"It had sentimental value…" She tasted the wine that she had at hands. "It was a special day for us."

Klaus met her gaze and sweetly both of them enjoyed the way that sounded.

A bag of Cheetos later Klaus was finally half way through the contract, his notes took a lot of space on the paper sheets but Caroline was supportive and although she made many questions they were all poignant.

"These are all for Bonnie to revise." He skipped through five entire pages, these were all heavily related to legal issues and he trusted her to milk them as well as she could.

Caroline rubbed her nose annoyed by the smell of the last piece of cheese that he save up. "I had no notion that there was so much to negotiate."

"From the money that they will spend on each record to the franchise of your name there's a list as big as your intolerance to Gorau Glas."

"Would you eat that last piece before I throw up?" She pleaded him softly.

"All right love." He naturally appeased her.

She scooped another inch closer to him and when he rested back on the sofa she was reading the contract over his shoulder, she benefited from it and spotted as he seemingly ignored an entire paragraph.

He was going to join that page with the pile on the coffee table but Caroline rested her palm against it.

"We have to negotiate your share." She complained.

He slowly turned his head to her. "Do you have a problem with my ten percent?"

"I want to change it." She sweetly smiled at him and stole the pen from his hand, she leaned over to write down a beautiful 25.

"You want me to gain 25% of everything that you make?" Klaus didn't hide his stun.

"We're in this together Klaus." She returned the pen to him.

"That's 25% of every record that you sell, every song that plays on the radio or every ticket that you sell on tour." He further explained it to her.

"You deserve it Klaus."

"My brother might object to that." He lowered his eyes from hers, shielding a little from his openness.

"Elijah doesn't know you as much as you hoped that he did." She kept their conversation in a low, close way.

"It's not hope." He smiled sadly. "It was a wish that I shouldn't nest because I left England at a very young age and the years have prevailed between us as harsh as the distance." He looked up. "It has hardened me and made me unrecognizable to my own brother."

"You are not that unreachable."

"Do you have valid proof of what you declare?"

She brought her eyebrows together and pursed her lips while driving her index towards his heart. "I had to drill but I reached the other side of you."

Her expression was so cute that he laughed but she also eased into a laugh, like it happened during the afternoon there was always a lasting moment where their eyes met and remained enchanted with each other.

He caught her hand and their fingers danced a forbidden dance of brushing and almost entwining.

Caroline looked away from him. "Don't look at me like you want to kiss me."

"Sweetheart…"

Caroline yanked herself away from him and started cleaning up the table.

"I need you to look at me." He took her hand, refusing to tell her about his current break unless she had those big emotional blue eyes of hers upon his. "I have something crucial to tell you."

Caroline placed the empty bottle of wine on her lips. "No kissing." She puckered her lips behind the glass.

He loudly laughed and removed the bottle from his way but his intentions were a failure as a consequence of a knock on the door.

Caroline wasn't expecting anyone but it was Klaus who went to the door and his blood seemed to ice and halt inside of his veins by finding Camille there.

"Hi." She fearfully smiled at him.

"What are you doing here?" He hissed unpleased.

Before a word left her mouth Elijah neared the couple.

"I've invited Camille to our dinner since you forgot to slip her the invitation." He said.

Klaus knew exactly what he wanted to slip over to Elijah, a right dry punch.

"I have your suit." Timidly she said.

"You went to my brother for support?" Klaus scolded her.

"Someone needs to clean up your mess." Elijah pushed the door open so that Camille could go inside the apartment.

"I only need to change, I won't be long." She said but without moving.

Caroline was struck by the tension ensuing right now.

"Take your time Camille, I still need to speak to my brother before we leave to the restaurant."

Camille had a small look as she crossed paths with Caroline. "I'm going to use Rebekah's bedroom."

"Caroline, do you mind giving me a minute alone with Niklaus? There's an important family gathering tonight where a big announcement will be made and I need to set the groom's right speech in motion before we arrive to the restaurant."

Caroline gave him a small nod, everything made a perfect match inside of her head, the sudden visit from Elijah and what Klaus was trying to tell her just now.

She gulped down, they were announcing the date of the wedding and she held back her tears rushing to the bedroom for refuge.

"I'm going to assault your face with my fist and it's not going to be a pretty sight." Klaus threatened Elijah.

"Camille came to me in a sobbing attire, was I to turn my back on a crying woman? It's not my way Niklaus."

"You need to stay away from my affairs."

"You called me Niklaus." He held out the suit for Klaus. "Now please go and get dressed so that we can right this wrong."

Darkly he smiled and accepted the suit. "All right."

* * *

Camille wasn't a major fan of makeup but she had to conceal the damage that her tears had left and she used the blush generously to hide the paleness of her cheeks, she added a little more lipstick to her lips and closed her clutch enjoying the final look.

She was content until she met with Caroline who was leaving her bedroom and looking better than she would ever look, it was a natural beauty that was hard to brush off and Camille felt as if somehow they were so much alike and yet planets apart.

Caroline left with the smallest smile and she held it immaculate when she saw Klaus in the balcony, he had switched his drink to whiskey and he came to the living room to speak to her.

"Are you going out with the band?" He asked calmly.

"No…" Caroline felt her heart quicken up when there was a motion by the front door. "Enzo called and I accepted to have dinner with him."

Klaus lowered the glass from his lips visibly disturbed and he fulminated Enzo with a glare as the other waltzed inside happy.

"Elijah let me in." He quickly concentrated on Caroline. "You look fantastic."

"Thanks." She looked at Klaus for a goodbye, the date was her way of copping with his advances with Camille, as futile as a bandage covering a bleeding was.

"Don't go." Klaus asked her quietly, begging with his eyes.

"I have to." She only replied.

"We need to leave as well Niklaus." Elijah urged for the scene to end fast.

"Goodnight everyone." Caroline took initiative and was the first to leave.

"Until tomorrow." Enzo winked at Klaus.

It was only a discrete motion but Elijah stopped next to Klaus with his shoulder pressing him against any rash actions. "She's not your concern, Camille is."

Klaus had the rest of his drink with a harsh gulp down.

* * *

Katerina, Kol and Bonnie were in the waiting area of the restaurant waiting for the others, it was a famous and current In place and it was crowded even in this part of the posh restaurant.

Katerina filled another glass of champagne and glanced at the couple sitting close to each other and sharing all sorts of complicity looks. "Are you two together again?"

Bonnie smiled as Kol kissed her cheek. "For the time being."

Kol pretended a scoff as he had his drink.

"I like seeing you together." Katerina said with her usual detachment from big emotional words. "I enjoy seeing interracial couples very much."

Bonnie moved her wide open eyes to Kol who chuckled.

The three of them fell into silence again and she blew a gush of air annoyed that Elijah was taking so long to arrive.

Kol took the chance to kiss Bonnie's neck and to pull a small giggle from her but also to merely admire how her skin wrinkled in a shiver.

She eyed him for décor but he couldn't care less where they were and kissed her lips softly.

"I'm not going back to your hotel room." She said between teeth.

"I was hoping to move back home myself." He said in a way that sounded like a sweet plea.

She kissed him back on the lips. "It's your last chance Kol, don't ruin it."

He nodded serious now, he was not planing on it, not even planing on having any unexpected occurrences.

"Thank goodness." Katerina dropped as soon as she saw Elijah. "You know how much I dread to wait." She was wearing really high heels so she almost surpassed Elijah's height when she stood.

He kissed her lightly to apologize. "Forgive me my dear but circumstances were harder to control than I anticipated."

Bonnie and Kol also stood from the seater sofa and he lovingly crossed his arm behind her back, tucking her waist with his hand while she leaned against him.

"The negotiations went well, I assume." Klaus smiled at the couple.

Kol beamed at his brother. "Mrs Mikaelson has accepted me back."

It was something that left Klaus happy.

"That's wonderful of her." Camille spoke right next to Klaus.

"Everyone's here…" Kol mumbled because Camille made him nervous, she was too serious all the time.

"Yes, it's a joyful occasion and even though Rebekah couldn't join us, tonight will be a chance to celebrate in family." Elijah distributed the champagne.

"What are we celebrating exactly?" Bonnie felt a bit like the intruder because she had been separated from Kol for a while and big Mikaelson gatherings made her nervous.

"I have an important communication to make." Klaus held his glass up high and divided his stare between Elijah and Camille. "I'm officially breaking off my engagement with Camille, in front of all of my family." He leaned his glass to Elijah. "Don't worry, I have already informed Rebekah and her husband."

Elijah was pale, all of his blood fled to his shoes while Katerina was entirely clueless.

"Cheers." Kol broke the silence only to have Bonnie shut him up with her eyes.

"You are acting on some unthought impulse." Camille stared at him in disbelief.

"I had all day to deliberate and my only sorrow so far is that I haven't made this choice sooner. We are no longer betrothed Camille."

She started to cry again while he walked away.

"Please don't make a scene Chamomile." Katerina begged her in a low voice.

Kol hurried after Elijah and Klaus, he walked into a heated fight that was happening outside the restaurant.

"That's not how you respected the dead." Elijah shouted enraged at Klaus.

"Don't tell me that without a clue of how I had to deal with this obligation while I was falling in love with someone else." Klaus kept his voice low.

"An obligation that no one forced on you to start with." Elijah grabbed his arm so that Klaus would face him properly. "You will not disgrace this family and simply walk away on your honor to go after some random common girl who lives a fantasy that she knows you."

Klaus shook Elijah's hand away. "Don't force me to walk out tonight on something more than just a façade of an engagement."

"I didn't know you for a coward." Elijah lastly said.

The blow hit him harder than a straight hook and Klaus turned away with despondency crossing his features.

Elijah tried to go after him but Kol stopped him by cutting him off. "Let him go Elijah." He went as far as placating him with a hand pressing his chest.

"He's… unwell." Elijah tried to explain the irrational behavior the best way that he could.

"You're seeing this the wrong way." Kol tried to tell him.

"How so?" Elijah eyed him as if he was the fool now.

"Nik's happiness has been like life on a desert, parched because of father and Nik's apathy towards this ongoing lack of life led him to the monumental mistake of insisting on a relationship with Camille although he never felt anything for her. You don't live here and you don't know how agonizing it was to witness his acceptance of something that he never wanted in the first place."

"You believe that my absence has left me blind to what's really happening?"

Kol sighed. "I think that you're refusing to see Nik's side in this and that your high moral compass is louder than anything that anyone is saying right now so you need to go home and to think about what you're doing because in this family, we matter the most." He reminded him.

Bonnie waited for him quietly by the door. "Do you still want to have dinner?" She asked as he circled his arms around her.

He shook his head. "I want to go home with you."

She agreed happy to just leave the family fight altogether.

* * *

Stefan's house was a safe bet to have a quiet night and Klaus knew that he would have all the alcohol that he needed, it was one of those situations where he was going to enjoy whiskey while keeping an eye on the door, Caroline wouldn't be home soon but he was going to monitor her safe return home until he fell asleep on the sofa.

* * *

Caroline turned around when he arrived, she was standing by the glass doors of the balcony and she sniffled again, the tears were menacing to increase by any second.

"I'm going to kill him." Klaus dropped the words as fast as he dropped his keys on the lobby table.

"It wasn't Enzo." She said. "I left the restaurant even before we reached the main course."

Suddenly Klaus was hopeful that she had taken the same walking out attitude that he did but there was something eerie about the way that she looked. "What happened love?"

"One of my mom's deputies called me while I was at the restaurant…" She paused to harvest some strength. "My mom was out on a routine patrol and she lost consciousness while she was at the wheel, she lost control of the car and had a small accident."

Klaus neared her anticipating that there was more to the story.

"She didn't hurt herself in the accident but they made some tests to find out why she fainted and they discovered that there's something wrong with her." Caroline's voice dropped right there. "Something really bad…" She began to cry. "My mom has cancer Klaus."

He shielded her against him and Caroline cried in his arms and against his chest.

* * *

**Soundtrack**:

Spending my time – _Roxette_

Ironic - _Alanis Morissette_

Almost lover _– A Fine Frenzy _

Poison – _Rita Ora_ (acoustic version)

In this shirt – _The Irrepressibles (Original version)_


	11. Timing

"Do you have any doubts?" Bonnie warmly asked, although she had explained every legal detail she was still patient enough to clarified anything else that Caroline might need.

Caroline smiled. "I think that I got everything."

It wasn't a smile that reached her eyes and Bonnie left her chair to sit next to Caroline on the other side of her desk. "Are you sure? Because this contract will change your life and I don't want you to sign unless you know exactly what you are sighing."

"It's a really good contract isn't it?" Caroline's eyes gained a sparkle.

"I have revised a lot of contracts, a few of those were for Klaus but this is the best contract that has ever landed on my desk. He outdid himself in everything, from the royals that you will receive to the guarantee that you will be in charge of every direction that your work will take."

"Klaus explained to me that the label didn't have much to lose, they are mostly spoiling Taylor's whim at this point so if my record doesn't do well they will just shut her down entirely."

Bonnie lifted her finger in an eager movement. "But what Klaus did was ensure that if that record does succeed you will get the biggest share of them all."

Caroline tenderly stroked the pages of her contract, it was a big weight to carry on her shoulders since so many were dependent on her success.

"Caroline, I'm sorry but… you look sad." Bonnie reached out. "I know that we aren't close but if there's something bothering you, you can talk to me."

"My mother's health isn't well and I'm worried." Caroline shared.

"Do you know what's wrong with her?"

"I do but she's been doing a lot of tests for the last week to find out how bad it is."

Bonnie affectionally rested her hand over Caroline's. "I hope that everything turns out ok."

The gesture brought a big warmth to Caroline's heart. "Thank you."

The conversation lasted for another hour and Caroline left Bonnie's office knowing that she had a new friend, she wrapped her scarf around her neck headed to another meeting.

Klaus was waiting for her a few blocks away but Caroline had time and chose to walk instead of taking a cab, the streets were all known to her now and she enjoyed the vibrating life that New York had.

What scared her in the beginning now fascinated her, starting with the number of people flooding the streets busy about their affairs and always moving in a rapid pace.

New York was captivating in every little way, from the different cultures that blended perfectly to the fashion aspect that naturally dazzled Caroline, it was impossible to simply walk by the stores without stopping for a better look and there was a beige clutch that had all of her attention, until her phone started ringing.

She quickly searched for it inside of her bag, since she found out about her mother's condition that they exchanged calls everyday and Caroline greeted Liz in a big and sweet way.

* * *

It was a guttural grunt that preceded his motion across the screen, Camille was definitely a woman of habits and everyday she insisted on calling him, precisely three times a day like she used to before his announcement a week ago.

And everyday he refused her call, visibly the message was ignored by her but Klaus was a man of convictions and easily he ignored her instead.

When his phone started harassing him again he almost dreaded that he would see her name on the screen once more and although the name changed his grunt remained strong, it was Elijah who pestered him now in a daily basis as well.

Klaus looked at the trash bin down on the street, would it be too hasty of him to just throw away his fancy phone? Probably yes but he felt cornered by calls that he didn't want to take.

"Hey, have you been waiting for long?" Caroline arrived from the side of the street that he wasn't guarding.

He turned to her and instantly her smile achieved a stunt, it healed his peevish mood. "I arrived a few minutes ago."

She looked at the building behind him. "Taylor won't be at the meeting, she has a concert today in Mexico."

"John sent me a message…" Klaus narrowed his eyes at her.

"I saw it on Twitter." She informed him.

"Someday you'll have to explain the attraction of that shenanigan because I don't understand the need of knowing when someone is eating or seeing what they are eating."

"I'm guessing you don't have Instagram either?"

He glided his hand along his curls. "I know that Rebekah has it and that she created an account under my name but I'm not responsible for anything that she links me with."

"It's called tagging Klaus." Caroline pursed her lips wishing that he wouldn't be offended if she laughed.

"Tagging was a game that we played at school and it was mostly touching someone and running away."

"Do you still use Facebook?"

"I didn't have many friends."

Caroline pulled her lower lip to cover her upper lip. "That's sad."

"I assume that you have a great number of followers?"

"I don't use Facebook anymore, I love Tumblr."

Klaus' grunts returned. "It's like speaking a different language when I'm fluent in 5."

"I'll handle the social network." She assumed the mission.

"I can't thank you enough." He was genuinely grateful.

But Caroline was grateful as well, he had been more than a friend lately, he had been a solid force that secured her whenever she vacillated in her strength. "I talked to my mom on my way here."

"Is there any recent development?" He was calm with his care.

"She spoke of a fanciful Doctor from an European city…" She lowered her chin so that she could give him a certain look. "Who arrived today?"

"I spoke to someone." He quietly rejected a cocky appreciation for his action. "Who spoke to someone instead."

"You didn't have to." Emotionally she lowered her voice.

"He's one of the best in the field and he will examine your mother's case thoroughly."

Caroline pressed her lips tight with a small gulp down, she still wasn't used to listen to the word _case_ associated to her mother.

"He will call me as soon as the results are known." Klaus shortened the gap between them.

She looked at him with glistening eyes. "Don't hide anything from me, no matter how bad it is I want to know everything."

He nodded.

"Ugh!" She closed her eyes and pressed her fists against them. "I don't want to cry again."

"You're fishing for another hug, aren't you?"

Caroline startled with a gasp and playfully scolded him.

His winning smirk was foretelling, the tiny play had placed a cork on her tears and brought forward another one of her smiles.

"They are waiting for us Caroline." He checked his watch.

She breathed out loudly before inhaling deeply. "I'm ready for this." She said and was the first to head inside of the building.

Klaus was familiarized with the headquarters of the label, he had been here a few times and easily took the lead, within minutes they were inside of an elevator and on the way up he pressed a stop button.

Caroline frowned noticing how they had stopped their journey and how serious Klaus looked.

"This is the last chance that we have to speak alone before we sit down for the final settlement and I want you to go inside of that room knowing that you are not obliged to anything, if the smallest issue rises up and leaves you unhappy you have the power to change it now. You can ask to read the contract again and for as many times as you need or even ask for an extension of time to reassess the numbers of your income, or even the terms of artistic freedom in which we have agreed previously."

There wasn't a detail about his expression that Caroline disregarded, his pupils were slightly dilated, his lips moved too rapidly and he was breathing as fast as he was talking. "You're nervous."

His eyes launched on another direction and he touched his pocket, it crossed his mind that it was a perfect time to occupy his hands with his phone but Klaus resisted the temptation. "It's part of my obligation to mention all aspects of a business deal, none of my clients have ever signed anything without knowing exactly what they were doing."

Stoically she motioned her hands forward and rested them over his shoulders. "Everything will be ok Klaus."

Frustrated that she was making fun of him, he pondered about his next two choices choosing to smile lastly.

"I didn't endure several months of Yoga and vocal coaching to throw it all away now."

Klaus motioned the elevator back to movement. "You should pick up the Yoga lessons again, you will require spiritual help to keep your sanity once we get this fair on the road."

"I have you to keep me grounded." She lowered her voice and her eyes.

Figuratively Klaus made the journey by her side and their arms brushed against each other, skin on skin and inwardly wishing that their fingers were intertwined.

"Our new star has arrived." John was waiting for them as soon as the elevator reached its destination.

"Yay, I have my first fan." Caroline tried a silly joke to control the growing knot in her stomach.

"Second one." He showed her a CD that he was holding. "Taylor listened to your demo on the flight to Mexico and she told me to give you this."

Caroline accepted a copy of Taylor's latest album and on the cover there was a note just for her. "_Waiting for us to tour together soon. Welcome to the family, be brave._" She read with a glance at Klaus.

"Are you going to show everyone what you are really capable of?" It was a question made like they were alone in the entire building.

"Give me a pen already." She replied with a perky smile that she had learned to dedicate only to him.

"The meeting room is this way." John cordially invited them to follow him.

On the way Caroline was reminded of the world that she was about to join, the walls were decorated with platinum records and pictures of the famous artists already part of the label, there were a few that she didn't know but the stunning white guitar on display inside of a casing was no stranger to her.

"That was the guitar that Taylor bought when her first album reached number one." Caroline laced her arm around Klaus' and pulled him closer to keep the murmur between them.

"I was promised a present as well."

Caroline giggled with a prickling excitement scratching her voice. "I'm a gift to the world Klaus and you are included with the masses."

"I take great offense in that." Klaus muttered.

She wobbled her head from one side to the other. "You should be flattered."

"That you see me as you see everyone else?"

She only scoffed him with an attempt to a laughter, her ultimate appreciation of Klaus was kept to herself and her real starstruck attitude showed when she crossed paths with a smiling girl on the hallway. "That's…" She pointed behind her in awe.

"Yes, Nelly uses our studio often to record." John said as he reached the end of the corridor.

"Nelly Furtado smiled at me." Caroline grinned at Klaus. "She's much prettier in person." She added on the way to the door that John was holding for her.

Inside of the meeting room there was a large oval table and two contracts with a pen resting on top of them, there were also two men that John introduced as the label lawyers.

Caroline sat at one end of the table, there were no clustered notes all over her new contract, the pages had doubled and the first thing that called out her attention was Klaus' first demand, any decision regarding her career would be of her unique responsibility.

Inevitably the weight of seeing her name on such a formal and official way caused her shoulders to slump a bit and she watched Klaus in silence, he was reading every page and blindly finding all the changes that he previously required, from time to time he would nod and then narrow his eyes like he was expecting to find some anomaly.

Finally he reached the last page and looked at her with curving lips and a cheeky smirk, that meant that everything was on their terms and Caroline's smile lit up the room.

Her heart thumped in her ears as she reached for the pen and with the deepest breath she signed the two copies.

"Welcome to fame." John sealed the deal by having the lawyers sign in after Klaus stamped his approval with a signature as well.

Caroline sighed most loudly and overtaken by a wish to start right away. "What happens now?"

"The label will set up a schedule of interviews, photoshoots, radio appearances and of course, realize your first official single." John explained.

"My first single is _Love song_."

John motioned his hands like he was shrugging. "It's your call."

Caroline beamed at Klaus but he was distracted by the sound of his phone and excused himself to take the call outside, she followed his exit as Klaus left the room in a hurry, the most eerie feeling took over her so she tried to keep him in sight, there was a fragment of a moment when their eyes met and she knew that something was wrong.

She was trembling when she stood up from her chair.

John was talking to the lawyers but glanced at Caroline when she joined Klaus outside, he noticed that Klaus just ended his phone call and told her something that truly affected her, she covered her mouth and then lowered her head as if she was about to start crying.

* * *

Matt looked at his watch again. "Maybe there was something that they didn't like and that they had to change, it happens all the time."

Tyler didn't like that option. "They better not screw this up for her."

Smiling Matt moved on his chair to have a better view of Tyler. "You like her."

"So do you." He pushed back the scoff to Matt.

"There's no malice at all in Caroline and when we are in the business for as long as you and I have been, that's so rare to find that it needs to be protected."

Tyler looked down on his guitar, he had met so many who ended up lost but Matt was right, they could guard her and keep her from losing north if she remained open as she was to their suggestions.

The two friends reacted to Matt's ringing tone, they were impatient for news and Tyler tried to read Matt's expressions while he was on the phone.

"Ok…" Matt nodded a couple more times before he made an agreement sound and ended the call.

Two words and a few nods weren't specific enough for Tyler. "What did she say?"

"It wasn't her, it was Klaus." Matt held his lips closed tightly.

"Dude, Hollywood wants its suspense back." Tyler lost his cool. "Did she sign the contract or not?"

"She did but Klaus asked me to go in tomorrow and to start working on Caroline's single with what we have so far."

"Why aren't we going to work with her in person?"

"Caroline and Klaus are on their way to Mystic Falls." Matt was as surprised as Tyler was but he had a creeping feeling about the reason behind the sudden journey.

* * *

It was already night when Klaus' private jet touched down in Virginia soil, the car trip from the airport to Mystic Falls Hospital was quiet as the hours that took them to travel here.

Caroline was silent and wrapped up in her worry and she wasn't thoroughly excited to return home either, the road seemed too narrowed and lacking of traffic and there was a glooming feeling as Klaus drove by the town square, there wasn't a single person out on the street.

"Nostalgic to be back to the cradle?" Klaus poked her thoughts.

"I think that it's the first time that I'm feeling depressed in my life." Caroline glanced at him. "I don't remember everything being so small."

"It's not the town that is small in its size, it's your dream that was bigger than the conventional box."

"And my personality." She was fast to add.

He agreed with a smile.

"Did your friend say anything else?" She wanted to be prepared before arriving to the hospital.

Klaus motioned his hand inside of his pocket and took his phone out. "I haven't heard it ring but you can check on it." He handed her the phone.

"You don't have any missed calls." She rested it on her lap with a slowing down of her breath, it could be a good sign.

Klaus arrived to the parking lot of the hospital and naturally found a place for his car, next to the only two other cars there. "Mateo said that she's stable."

"She has a terminal illness that will debilitate her gradually." Caroline shook her head. "You don't know my mom, being confined to a bed for the rest of her days while she's getting weaker by the day is a nightmare. She's so active and bossy and she won't accept having to depend on someone else to take care of her."

"I know that her daughter is exactly like her." Klaus simply acknowledged.

Caroline's eyes watered at once. "Will you go in with me? I don't want to be alone for this."

"I wasn't planning on jumping ship right away."

She reached for her door handle when his phone started ringing. "It's Camille." She turned to him without making eye contact and was the first to leave the car.

She didn't even wait for him and went inside of the hospital alone.

Klaus stayed behind to take the call and to bargain an end to all the stalking phone calls but the conversation was a hard one to conduct when all that Camille did was cry, he tried to remain calm but her hysteric pleas weren't productive and lastly he had to ask her to call him again when she was calmer.

It was wrong of him to give her such false ambiguous hopes but he needed a bandaid for the moment so that he could have his focus somewhere else and Klaus went to look for Caroline knowing that he was only postponing another long and terminal talk with Camille.

He found Caroline talking to Mateo and to the other resident town doctors, they were explaining that Liz had Stage 2 cancer which meant that it hadn't spread out into surrounding tissue but remained in a small part of her brain that was hard to operate.

"… however the cancer cells have spread into lymph nodes closer to where the tumor is located and it's that peculiar problem that I want to work with." Mateo spoke in a calm reachable voice. "If we contain those cells from spreading now she might have another 5 or 6 months before reaching a stage where it might spread to another body organ."

"That's so little time." Caroline's agony started to mess with her ability to listen to everything without interrupting.

"It could be less if we don't do anything right away." Mateo said.

"That's not entirely true." An old doctor said, visibly annoyed by the imposing manners of the stranger. "I have been your mother's doctor for years, I have given birth to you and I know what's best for Liz." He looked at Caroline serious. "And it's not to move her to another country like she's part of a tv show."

"Move?" Caroline looked around the group. "Who said anything about moving my mother?"

"I have a clinic in Italy and I want to take your mother there. I can make this cancer regress." Mateo stated sure of himself.

The medicine crew protested with huffs and appalled discontentment.

"Wait, how is that possible?" Caroline came prepared to say goodbye to her mother not to hear this.

"If we don't attack now that tumor is going to grow and it's going to happen fast."

"Attack…" Caroline didn't have a steady breath at hand and staggered. "That's a very aggressive way to speak about my mother's condition."

Mateo nodded knowing that she was right. "But we can't coddle cancer Caroline and the exams are foretelling, that tumor is pressing down on an area that will affect her speech, her sight and her ability to walk. If we fight it now, we are giving your mother a chance."

"For another year? Possibly less if the treatments don't work." Caroline's anguish strained her voice.

"I can't promise you more but the first round of treatments will tell us how far we can go."

"There's no medical validation to make your mother endure excruciating treatments when she can easily do the normal procedures and wait to see how her body reacts." The old Doctor defended.

"How aggressive are the treatments?" Caroline asked Mateo.

"They are aggressive like my speech but I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't think that she could do it."

Upon his words the doctors erupted in a heated discussion and Caroline felt immensely lost among the confusion, it was too much to ask for a decision when she was bombarded with so much information.

Securely Klaus wrapped his arm around her shoulders and when she looked up at him he calmed her with a smile, he took her away with him and far from the ongoing dispute between generations and ideals.

"I saw a promising coffee machine on my way here." He pointed to the vending machine down the corridor.

"Do you trust him?" Caroline asked.

He replied while getting her a cup of coffee. "Every case is a case but I met him through one of my clients and I've heard nothing but good stories about him. I appreciate his honesty and I know that he comes off arrogant but he's a good doctor love."

"What should I do?" She asked for help more than anything.

"You should go see your mother." Klaus suggested.

She gave in easily. "Come on, let me introduce you to the other Forbes' girl." Caroline anticipated a big showdown.

* * *

Liz woke from her small slumber with a sweet fragrance in the room and she smiled even before opening her eyes properly.

"Hi." Caroline whispered with a big smile.

"This is a good dream." Liz was happy with her subconscious for fabricating something that included her baby girl.

"I'm really here mom, this isn't a dream." Caroline took her hand.

Liz looked at the girl sitting on the bed next to her sort of in disbelief but that smoothness had to be real and she held Caroline's hand between hers. "Honey…"

"I came to visit." Caroline softly said.

"I have to be urgently dying if you are here." Liz said a bit alarmed.

"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Caroline complained with a grumbled expression.

Liz laughed. "That it's good to see my baby girl again." She opened her arms calling Caroline into a hug.

Like she was 12 and arriving home from school Caroline hid in her mother's arms and closed her eyes while they hugged, singing was what made Caroline happy in life but not even that completed her as much as having her cheek against Liz' shoulder and feeling that motherly caress of her mother's fingers brushing her hair.

"Your hair is longer and you've lost weight." Liz estimated at once.

"No I haven't." Caroline protested.

Liz knew better than to start a silly dispute over who was right and she settled with cuddling her ever elusive daughter closely, but if her hands were gentle her eyes were sharp and she spotted the man standing by the window. "There's a really attractive man in the room." She said in a low voice.

Caroline pulled back with a jolt, she forgot about his presence. "Oh, mom... that's my manager, Klaus."

He stepped away from the wall at once and neared the bed. "Mrs. Forbes."

"I'm divorced." Liz instantly corrected him.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, miss Forbes." He redeemed himself with a polite smile.

Liz smiled with fake. "It's a pleasure to meet back the man who drove by my town one night and kidnapped my daughter."

Klaus dithered his stare towards Caroline.

"Mom..." She intervened to keep the peace.

"We're just getting acquainted sweety." Liz appeased her with a pad on her hand.

"I left by my own choice." Caroline reminded her.

Liz placed a lock of Caroline's hair back in place and then stroked her cheek. "I've raised you that way."

Caroline used the cue. "Why didn't you call me when you first started having the symptoms?"

Liz glanced at Klaus before anything.

"I will get a refill." He waved his empty coffee cup. "Is there anything I could provide the ladies?"

"My guns." Liz pleaded with another fake smile.

Caroline apologized for her mother's temper with a sweet look at him but truthfully he liked the personality striving in the Forbes family and left with a tiny smirk.

"Give him a break, he's been an incredible friend." Caroline asked her mother.

"I thought that he was your manager."

"And he is."

"Is he aiming at the triple threat and trying to be your boyfriend as well?"

Caroline blushed unable to trick her mother. "He's engaged to a phycologist."

"Poor guy." Liz frowned. "No one deserves to be analyzed all the time."

The comment made Caroline laugh.

Liz liked seeing that and smiled happy to have Caroline here.

She also enjoyed the laid back moment but there was a question hanging in the air. "When did you find out that you were ill?"

Liz started of by having a deep breath. "I started forgetting small things like where I left my keys, then the headaches started and I thought that they were just from all the hard work."

Caroline judged her with a lowering of her eyelids. "Like saving old Tammy's cat?"

Liz straightened the sheet around her body. "He's a sneaky little cat and he gives us a lot of work."

"Mom, be serious. You knew that you were sick and you didn't tell anyone about it until they found you fainted inside of a patrol car."

"My health life is not public domain." Liz touched the hospital bracelet annoyed that it was there in the first place. "And I wanted to go home two days ago, it's silly that they are keeping me in here. I am the law enforcement of this town not a prisoner."

"Don't pretend that this is just a cold." Caroline stood up fired up by a sentiment of revolt. "You're really ill and you hid it from me."

"Your life is just starting and I'm not expecting much from what's left of mine."

"Seriously mom?"

Liz looked at her wordless.

"I'm not going to give up on you and just get into a car and leave."

"That foreign Doctor talked to you, didn't he?"

"He wants to take you to Italy."

"He's pretty and it's flattering that a man wants to take me out of country when I'm not young and beautiful anymore." Liz calmed down and motioned an upset Caroline closer to her. "Honey, I have a little bugger in my head and they can't crack open my skull to get it out but that's not going to stop me from living my life."

"I'm scared of losing you." Caroline sat down next to her mother again.

"I haven't dropped the towel yet and I'm going to do the treatments that my family doctor advised me to do and I'm going to keep working because I'm not the first woman on Earth to have cancer and to survive it."

"What if it's not enough?" Caroline whispered.

Liz shook her head with a high chin. "I survived divorce and I survived small town gossip so there's nothing that could tear me down now."

"I'm going to stay here with you."

"Absolutely not!" Liz protested decisively. "You are going back to your singing in the big city."

"Mom I can't leave you again." Caroline's turmoil took over.

"Caroline Forbes, for once you are going to do as I tell you."

Caroline shook her head unwilling to compromise. "No, I'm going to stay here. I'm going to be a good daughter for once."

Liz slumped her solid composure when she started crying. "Caroline…"

"I was a horrible daughter, I was always so engaged with my things that I didn't include you in anything and then I left you in this town..."

"I didn't raise you to be dependent and that was a questionable parenting choice but from the second that you started crawling that you always wanted to go in a different direction and I realized very early on that I couldn't hold you back on anything." Liz cradled Caroline's face. "This cancer is not your fault and it's not your duty to heal me or to give me an extension. It's in God's hands wether if I will live another year or 30 more but whatever time I have left, I want to spend it knowing that you are doing what you love the most."

"You're supposed to call me fuming about the distasteful things that I will wear on my concerts." Caroline sniffled.

"No lingerie showing, a classy girl provokes instead of showing."

Cutely a small laughter escaped Caroline. "And she munches like she's keeping a secret."

Liz nodded proudly. "It was the only thing that my mother taught me and that I found useful, the rest I've learned with you."

"I love you mommy." Caroline had another sniffle.

There was also another hug before Liz sent her out to tell the fancy Doctor that she was staying in Mystic Falls.

While Caroline was away a nurse came to check on Liz and she asked for a favor.

"Do you mind telling the Adonis out there on the hallway to come inside?"

The nurse winked at Liz and a minute later Klaus walked in.

"Miss Forbes." There was a respectful tone attached to the cautious attire.

She waved her hand in the direction of the chair. "You can call me Liz."

Suddenly he was able to breath more at ease but he was still tense as he sat down. "You wanted a word?"

"A nice little head of curls, a pair of dimples and a lilt accent." She entwined her hands dropping them with intention over her lap. "You are every mother's worst fear."

His response was to lick his lips.

"But those eyes don't fool anyone." She had a better look at the handsome man. "You care for my daughter."

Klaus lowered his eyes to the bed level.

"And it's because of that care that I need to ask you something."

He had been in a similar situation before and Klaus thought of the way that she would ask him for the avowal but there was nothing conventional about Liz and she asked only what she thought he would excel at doing.

"My Caroline is nothing like this town, she's extraordinary and she deserves to be rewarded for all the greatness that exists inside of her so don't let her give up, ever."

The blue in his eyes was set on fire as her words reflected his own conviction.

"No matter how hard everything turns out to be from now on or how hard she might grief my death once I'm gone, don't let her walk away from her dream. Push her to keep going forward when she's ready to turn back and allow her to be herself without letting it all change her."

"She will be greatly upset if she finds out that we had this conversation." He stood up promising her that he had every intention of carrying out her wish.

Liz shared a complicity look and smile with him, it was probably a vow that he already took upon himself a while ago so she didn't let him go away without a final word. "One final thing Klaus."

The prelude glued him to the ground.

"Don't start anything with Caroline unless you are ready to give her everything that you can give her, she already feels that she's not worthy of being whole because her father left the way that he did so I don't want my baby girl to ever feel again that she's not good enough for a man."

Klaus gulped down a growing lump in his throat, weighed down he turned away.

* * *

"I'm not going to insist." Caroline had to make a decision and she chose to let her mother decide about the course of her treatment, at least that's what she spent the entire ride telling Klaus.

As usual he listened to her endless unravel of words with a smile.

She parked the car in her driveway. "This is my house."

He left the passenger seat intrigued by the endlessly common house. "It looks a tad small to contain your ego."

Caroline walked by him with a hit on his shoulder. "Funny Klaus." She undid her fist sore. "You have really hard shoulders."

"Dealing with a feisty blonde everyday keeps me in shape."

She cringed her lips to hide the smile and opened the front door.

He stopped at the threshold without stepping inside.

Caroline looked at him with parting hands. "Are you a vampire?" She joked. "I invite you in."

"The house was unlocked." He was still clinging to that disturbing detail.

"My mother is the Sherif, no one is going to rob anything."

He closed the door behind him still thoughtful about that but about something else as well. "I could rent a room somewhere in town."

Caroline lost her shoes and walked barefoot to another division. "Don't be silly, I have a very comfortable couch." She returned with a pillow and some blankets.

"You also have a big collection of music." He was scanning the shelves full of colorful CDs.

"All the money that I made at the Grill was to buy music."

"Take That, Spice Girls, Goldfrapp, Oasis, Radiohead…" He guided his eyes at Caroline. "I see a pattern."

"I like the way that you all talk." She dropped the stuff that she was carrying on the couch and walked over to him while he carried on with his inspection.

Her taste would go from one extreme to the other, some bands were pure pop while others were punk rock but he also found the occasional alternative choice but whilst he was enchanted to have a glimpse into her musical education he was also surprised that Caroline had a special inclination to listen to old music.

"Did you stop buying music when you turned 10?"

Caroline knew that his attentive eye would pick up on it so she was ready for the joke. "You are not the only one who likes to live in the past."

"Two extremes of the same rope touching at the middle?" He cocked his eyebrow. "Those are some impossible odds at best."

"I could blame my father for it, he was a big music lover and we would always have music in the house."

"Is he aware of your talent?"

Caroline shrugged. "He never mentions anything on the birthday cards that he sends every year." She picked up the small music box that was on the shelve.

When she opened it a ballerina started to rotate to the soft music echoing from inside and Klaus remembered the story behind it. "Your ballerina phase." He touched the pink doll with the top of his finger.

She smiled adoring that her little story hadn't fell on deaf ears. "I want to show you something really cool." She closed the music box and headed for the storage cabinet that was located just next to the kitchen.

Her hand blindly found the light switch and then she had to dig through a few tools and sports equipment that was forgotten in there.

"I know that it's here somewhere…" She mumbled while moving a basket full of her old dolls out of the way.

While she was roaming through her boxed up life Klaus had landed his eyes on a smaller card box that was closer to the door and he crouched to take out a folded page of a newspaper, the page was very old but he recognized the small girl in the picture at once, it was Caroline at age 7 holding a trophy in her hands and looking adorable in her flowery dress and tiara.

"I found it!" She squealed happy and turned with a wooden box in her hands.

He moved the relic in his. "They made a big story about the young girl who won the annual town's talent event."

"My mom keeps everything…" She moved her head from one side to the other annoyed. "It was my big first win." She looked at Klaus with a smile. "And I wore the tiara for a month." She gave him back the worn-out piece.

Klaus laughed but kept the folded paper inside of his pocket, he followed Caroline back to the living room.

"My father left a few things behind and my mom just pushed everything into a box and hid it in the closet." Caroline took a few random things from inside the box until she found exactly what she was looking for.

Klaus parted his lips reacting purely to the sight, he would distinguish that cover anywhere, the flowers were glossier than the copies that came out later.

"Prince and the Revolution." Caroline slid the purple disc out of the cover. "Purple rain, pressed on 180 gram vinyl, mastered from the original analog master tapes. And original packaging." She wiggled her eyebrows.

Klaus cleared his voice or he would sound too giddy. "That has to be one of the first editions."

"Mmhm." Caroline nodded while bringing the vinyl closer to him. "Do you want to touch it?"

He actually cleaned his palms on his Jeans before taking the record. "_Making love and music is the only thing worth fighting for_."

"Obviously I've hit a nerve." Caroline looked at him struck, his smile was too genuine and childlike.

"It's an old affair." He gave her back the treasure.

"Well, it's painful to stop now… after all that foreplay." She teased him on her way to the vinyl player.

Carefully she made the music fill the room and she expected a loud moan from him but Klaus restrained, although she could see quite the range of emotions looming inside of him, the record was special to him and he cave in right off the bat, as soon as the first notes of _Let's go crazy _started Klaus removed his jacket and sat down on the sofa appreciating the wonderful sound that was reaching him.

Caroline joined him with two beers. "My mother doesn't like wine." She explained the lack of some rosy beverage to side their moment.

"Your mother is very distinct." Klaus took his beer with a grave drop of his voice.

Caroline laughed while sipping on her beer so there was a drop that got away, she brushed her lip still cackling. "She's one of a kind, you got that right."

"Your love for her comes out in the way that she is so easily connected to your laughter."

She rested her elbow against the sofa and her head on her palm. "She's my hero. She was left with a kid and a demanding profession and she did it all without complaining once. I never saw my mother cry or show any kind of weakness so I should have known that she would fight this thing on her own tempo and rules."

"Mateo was impressed by her strength as well and he offered to stay a few more days. I reckon that he will try to convince her or maybe he's just smitten by the waterfalls and wants to have some vacation."

"Why did she want to talk to you alone?"

He had a long sip on his beer. "She doesn't want you to stop, regardless of what obstacle shows up in your way."

"Damn it…" Caroline breathed out.

"You respect her too much to go against her will." He assumed the nature of their relationship easily.

Caroline started to peel the label off the bottle with her nail. "After I finished high school, I started college as my backup plan, in case I wouldn't become famous. It was fun and I wasn't taking it nearly as serious as I should have and those first weeks were all about the parties." She had slowed down her pace on purpose, she was about to stir up painful waters. "During one of those parties I bumped into someone I knew from high school, Sean's parents lived right next door and I grew up with him. Now he was a freshman and part of a fraternity that had some bad reputation at campus but I knew Sean so I didn't care about any of the rumors and I accepted to have a drink with him the next night."

In silence Klaus rested his bottle on the coffee table wanting to give her all of his attention.

Caroline didn't take her eyes from the bottle. "We went to some bar and started talking about our childhood stories, after the second drink everything started to become blurry and I was so dizzy that I couldn't hold a conversation straight or understand a thing of what he was saying. Before I could process what was happening he was already carrying me to the car and driving back to the fraternity. I tried to fight him while he dragged me to his bedroom but he kept saying that he was just going to give me coffee."

She paused and if part of him wanted to respect her wish to share this with him, another part wanted to jump straight to the identification of this low life so that he could hunt him down and skin him alive.

Caroline left her bottle next to his on the table and spoke of what still haunted her some nights. "There were drugs in the coffee as well and I lost absolute control of what was happening around me. The last thing that I remember before blacking out is Sean saying that he was going to record everything on video so that I could see it later if I wanted to."

"Does he have a surname?" Klaus gritted the question.

Caroline almost smiled of how bloodthirsty he sounded. "Sean was still setting up the camera when my mother burst into his room."

Klaus constricted his eyes in surprise.

"The man working at the bar was from Mystic Falls and he called my mother as soon as he saw Sean spike my drink." She explained the small riddle. "When I woke up in the hospital the nurses told me that it took three deputies to pull my mom away from Sean. She almost lost her badge that night but she beat him up into a purple pulp."

"There should have been a medal instead of a reprimand."

She found him sweet for saying that. "I dropped out of college after that but I learned later that a few girls came forward to accuse Sean and that the police found videos of his crimes so he was charged and sent to prison for a few years, his parents moved out in shame and I started working at the Grill full time. My mom loves being a cop as much as I love singing and she almost gave that up to protect me…" She shook her head. "I don't want to let her down Klaus."

He stroked the side of her chin. "All you have to do is never change, love."

She lowered her eyes but moved her face so that sinfully she would feel his touch spreading across her skin.

His knuckles grazed her lips as he himself allowed the sin to last. "The way that I was indifferent at the beginning…" he easily did the math and knew that they started working shortly after her traumatic incident.

"It wasn't that bad, although you made me hate the word _professional_."

"Your life is about to take a big tornado spin, I already received your schedule and if you thought that I made your life hard then you must prepare mentally for what's coming."

"Bring it on." She incited him with a fiery smile and a risky malicious smile.

Klaus pulled back his touch and she noticed the change in the mood, probably for the best considering how badly she wanted him to kiss her.

She stood up and took the bottles to the kitchen.

"There's also the matter regarding your mother, she might not have that much time if we must be cruelly realistic and you should make time for what little you have left with her."

She wasn't as steady as she wished and dropped the bottles in the counter with an anger that was almost building up. "Is there a point to remind me Klaus that my mother is dying?"

He had been shortening the space between them and he paced even closer to her until he was nose to nose with her. "Yes there is." He glided a hand across her cheek and pressed his palm against her skin, this time with intent. "I've dealt closely with an illness like this and she will be gone before you are ready to lose her, then you will be enraged that you haven't dedicated yourself to her as you should have, although you did." He took her other cheek with his free hand. "The day that you will lose her will not be the worst day of your life, the ones that will follow will be, because you will feel alone and helpless to change something that already happened. That's the worst."

She closed her eyes making the dancing tears quietly fall down her cheeks.

Klaus leaned over. "I'm telling you this because I'm stepping back to let you deal with your mother and to cherish what you have left with her without having to worry about what's around you."

In instinct she closed her hands around his shirt, fierce fists that meant that she didn't want him to leave.

"Don't worry sweetheart." He playfully smiled at her. "I'm not going anywhere."

"This is just like that dance that we had outside that pub, isn't it? This entire day has been my consolation prize, hasn't it?"

"No love, I'm a free man this time around." He cupped her face harder, like he was _allowed_ to do that now.

She mouthed the words without making a sound and her eyes were wide while gazing at him.

"I have been for a week now but it wasn't my moment to barge into your life when your mother is fighting for hers." He looked down on her lips. "But when the right time in your life happens, this is where you will find me." He smiled at her with a stunning piercing blue stare that found her eyes again.

She expelled a small happy laughter just before lacing her hand around his neck and hauling him closer, she touched his lips asking for the kiss that she deserved, a proper kiss now that he wasn't sealed to another woman anymore.

His hand drifted to her neck and he tilted her head a little, he pressed her lips, first the upper one and then the lower one, lingered with a soft brush before pressing with force again, then with a curious tongue he poked for permission, finding that she tasted heavenly when he swept in for a deeper kiss.

* * *

**Soundtrack**:

Powerless (say what you want) – _Nelly Furtado _

Silent storm – _Carl Espen _

Just a little bit of your heart – _Ariana Grande _

When doves cry – _Damien Rice _

Champagne kisses –_ Jessie Ware_


	12. Make or break

The easy mood was naturally carried out as Ryan pressed the little red button to return to the Live broadcast. "Welcome back to Radio NY where I'm still having a lovely conversation with the gorgeous Caroline Forbes." He smiled at her. "Who just blushed."

Caroline laughed softly. "I'm a big fan of yours and I'm on the radio where people can't see me blush." She cutely waved her hands a bit.

Ryan didn't hide his liking for the new singer. "Well folks you will have to believe me, she is blushing and she has a fresh single on the market that will cook quite the storm." He winked at her.

"Thank you Ryan." She dazzled him with a perfect smile.

"Thank you for visiting and I hope to see you again soon in our little studio but before I run your song what would you like to tell the audience that is being introduced to your music?"

"That it all comes from the heart and that I hope everyone likes my songs as much as I like singing them."

He nodded. "That sounds just right to me." He prepared to press play on the next set of songs that started with hers. "And when will everyone be able to buy your single?"

"Next week the single will be available on cd but since yesterday it has been available on iTunes for download so make sure that you listen to _Love Song_ by Caroline Forbes." She cutely pleaded the audience.

"You've made my job easier." The host joked as an end to their live conversation and pressed _play_ next, he then went offline and had a few more words with Caroline before she left the small studio.

It had been the very first official interview that Caroline had done and even though it hadn't been longer than 15 minutes, commercial included, she still felt overwhelmed as she was walked out of the studio by an assistant.

Klaus was waiting for her on the lounge and he handed her the long scarf that he had been holding out for her. "It went well."

"Didn't I sound like a dork?" She asked unsure.

He chuckled with his eyes on his watch. "It was good for a first interview."

Caroline gave another loop to her scarf. "I was so nervous that I thought that I wouldn't be able to get a single word out."

"It was important for him to like you because it will play in our favor if he still remembers you tomorrow morning and chooses to play your song on his list."

Caroline followed Klaus out of the building with a knot in her stomach, he already explained to her how radios worked, that each host was obliged by the radio to play a certain list that was mostly made of whatever hit was currently surfing the wire or the singles that were sponsored by the labels that week, now in order for Caroline's single to be played every hour she would have to be part of the _Hot list_ or to get in by the sneaky way which was to fall into the graces of the host and to be part of a much harder list, the _personal list_.

This list, consisting of Ryan's personal favorites was eclectic and extremely hard to feature any new artist but both Caroline and Klaus had high hopes.

It was still dark and Caroline pulled her shoulders together. "I need coffee." She complained, it was 8 in the morning and she had been up since 6am.

Klaus headed to the nearest coffee stand and ordered two black coffees. "Next on our agenda is _Power 105_."

"That's what, 2 blocks from here?" She tried to guess how far they were.

"Three so we must get on our way." They would not be on time if they ventured in the traffic so Klaus decided that they should walk.

"I talked to Rebekah yesterday." Caroline said as they started their morning walk.

"She must be exalted to have Stefan around."

Caroline nodded with a smile. "She's planing on getting pregnant."

Klaus interrupted his coffee to look at Caroline. "Those are unexpected expecting news."

Caroline laughed with his wit. "She was very excited and I think that they are already brainstorming for baby names."

"Elijah is going to be very opinionated about that as well, he never resigned to the fact that Katerina has ruled out the possibility of having a child with him."

"How about you?" Caroline nibbled the slightest on her lower lip as she looked at him. "Is it something that was part of your plans…" She lost her bravery just as she was about to add _with Camille_.

"I tend to focus only on matters that I know for a fact that I will excel at."

"You're so good at directing others but you're very harsh on yourself Klaus."

"And you're too gullible…" He teased her with a smile. "It's all rainbows and hearts on your bubbly garden."

She pursed her lips with a scowl. "You wish that you were as positive as I am."

"Not in a million years sweetheart." He scoffed easily.

She conveyed a very grave expression. "I could be serious like you are, all grumpy and mean and lord of the music industry." She spread her arms with a deep voice. "It would be me against the world and the lower beings who dared to smile around me would be beheaded." She sliced through the air ruthlessly before finding a graceful posture. "I would look down on the petulant users of modern gadgets and have them all imprisoned and as I crossed the hallway of dungeons I would release my dark evil laughter upon them." She threw her head back and artistically faked a big guttural laughter.

"You're making a scene Caroline." He calmly said before drinking his coffee.

She looked at him with a shrug. "I'm not famous yet so it doesn't matter."

He kept on drinking with a hand inside of his pocket and a cool attire about him.

"And I don't mind being silly if that will make you smile…" She roguishly smiled before laughing again in that theatrical way.

He simply looked at her serious.

"Is that a smile that I see hiding behind that solid grumpy face?" She pointed at him.

"No." He dropped calmly.

"I think that I see a smile in there." She waved her finger at him.

"I'm not going to smile Caroline." He licked his lips trying to keep his lips busy.

"Ah!" Caroline gasped loudly. "You're trying not to smile." She vehemently pointed at him.

"I am not going to smile." He grabbed her petulant finger.

Caroline laughed. "You are so close to smiling."

Exasperated he tried to keep his hard features but annoyingly the tiniest clue of a smile escaped him.

Caroline bounced in the middle of the street. "You're smiling, you're smiling."

He shook his head giving in but looking down on the sidewalk.

Caroline came closer to him. "You need to smile more often… you look so pretty when you smile."

He looked up to meet her eyes and this time he kept his smile. "I'll smile more often when your name becomes a household name in the industry."

Caroline's smile faded in intensity, it wasn't what she wanted to hear exactly but she was a tough girl when she had to be one and she had a big day ahead of her so she took his side happily as he started to walk again.

As soon as they reached the next radio station she won everyone there with her smile and her sweet personality, the small interview was fun and she naturally charmed everyone within the short amount of time that she was given.

The next appointment was another radio station that thankfully was nearby and this time she was more at ease, so much that she was even asked to sing a little bit for them live, it was a two-minute performance that she nailed effortlessly.

* * *

"I could get used to this." She told Klaus as she left the tall building behind.

"I will most gladly receive your enthusiasm." He handed her a bunch of papers.

"The morning show is next, right?" She was faced with a list of questions on paper so she looked at Klaus confused.

"The majority of live shows have a predefined list of questions that they send every artist before the interview takes place."

Caroline crumbled her face. "That takes away the magic of everything."

"Embrace the television world." He motioned his fingers to the corner of her lips and twisted them up to form a smile. "_Keep that smile going gorgeous._" He winked at her after using an American accent on her.

She slapped his hands away with a huff. "You sound like a creep when you talk like us."

"I'm aware of my superiority." He waved to get them a cab.

Unenthusiastically Caroline started getting acquainted with the questions that they would ask her.

It was a short ride to the tv studio and once in there it was a lot to take in, there were a lot of people walking around and talking to each other in a language that was beyond Caroline, then after the hectic first impression she was suddenly surrounded by a horde of people shooting a lot of directions that she had to take.

Two minutes later she was sitting on a makeup chair and her stylish large hat was gone, she was having her hair curled although she had her curls on point and even when she tried to engage into a small talk the woman who was applying her makeup only told her not to blink as she used the eyeliner harshly.

With throbbing eyes Caroline was happy when the woman moved on to someone else. "I miss Lamar…" She mumbled even before she looked at the mirror, it was a big scare to see so much makeup on her face and she left the makeup room unhappy.

Even Klaus had a double look at her when she arrived to his side.

"I need a bathroom." Caroline opened her purse.

"Are you feeling ill?" He asked slowly.

"No." She had a dreadful look at herself in the small mirror that she carried in her purse. "I look like a bad plastic doll and I need to fix this." She used her hand in a circle in front of her face.

"They must use a lot of makeup because of the lights." He tried to be nice about her heavy look.

"I'm wearing a peach lipstick." She widened her eyes at him like he was blind.

"You have a minute before they come to wire you up." He warned her.

She politely smiled at a girl walking by them. "Excuse me, where's the bathroom?"

"Just over there." She pointed in a nearby direction.

"Don't take long." Klaus lifted his voice as she walked away.

"I'm wearing pumps." She glared back at him, running was impossible with these.

With a sigh he eventually smiled, she was wearing colorful shorts and a white shirt that was buttoned up in the back while in the front it had a flower pattern and her shoes were high and red as the wide hat that she was now shoving down her head, he could tell how frustrated she was that certain things were not under her control but there was so much he could grant Caroline this instant, not that she needed a stylist and a personal hairdresser and makeup artist but even so that was out of his budget right now.

After two precise minutes Caroline returned with that glow of hers, the dark black around her eyes was dimmer and her cheeks weren't so red now, just this perky little pink lived there now and the lipstick had been replaced by a stunning red that made Klaus clear his throat, it was hard resisting the idea of pressing her lips with his which was probably what she was aiming at.

"Better?" She asked him adorably batting her long eyelashes.

"Improved." He owned up.

She smiled at him but already there was a crew trying to get her ready to go on stage and one of them was giving her clearcut instructions.

"… after I give you the signal you have to cross that passageway, then without stopping you have to walk straight to the sofa, Carlene will talk to you for 10 minutes and then we will go on commercial break, when we get back you will sing and that's a wrap."

Caroline nodded with terrible concentration but she had one doubt. "Do you think that I can talk to the resident piano guy first?" She had spotted him around just now. "I want to get a feel of how he plays and arrange the tone with him and… stuff." She shortened her rambling because she didn't want to talk to this guy but with the other one instead.

"Ummm." He held the in ear-monitors for her. "We're using playback."

She grew stiff and slowly moved her eyes to Klaus.

"Is it possible to arrange for a minute alone?" Klaus asked the assistant politely.

"Sure." The girl was all ready anyway and he had other things to get done.

Once they were relatively alone Klaus smiled at Caroline.

"Hide that smile right now." Caroline hissed at him.

"It's normal procedure with these shows, they are live and it's a safety net for them as well as it is one for us."

"I don't need a safety net." She struck back horrified.

"Caroline." He breathed out, bringing his temper to a simmer.

"It's my first appearance on national television and it's the one throwback that everyone will use ten years from now, I can't introduce myself to America by lip-singing, it's not me." She pleaded with a hoarse voice. "This is my one chance to get people talking and they won't remember me if I'm only another one singing along with a safe recorded song."

"If this goes sour…"

"You know that I can do this Klaus."

Impatiently he flicked his tongue across his lips.

"Go big or go home." She enticed him.

"New York is starting to get to you." Klaus countered.

Cunningly she smiled hugely knowing that she was wining him over.

"I could have a word with Carlene but the piano man doesn't know your song."

She waved her phone at him. "Trust me Klaus, I have this covered."

Their studio was only a couple of streets away and she was hoping that Matt would be her savior, however Matt wasn't in the studio and he would never make it on time so it was up to Jeremy to rescue Caroline's day, 20 minutes after the call he was shaking and wondering how he went from a regular morning spent in his favorite vintage record store to being powdered in the face and taken into a big stage with a lot of bright lights blinding him.

Caroline encouraged him with a smile, apparently she was the only one who wasn't nervous considering how Klaus was seemingly giving up on breathing and simply stood in the sidelines convinced that it was crazy to let Caroline have her way with this.

The commercial break was over and after a subtle cue from her Jeremy started the melody that Caroline covered with a clear voice, having only the piano accompanying her was by no means impairing and Caroline nailed the performance with an easiness that appeased Klaus to no end, she really was something else.

She was beautiful to watch and vocally there was nothing to correct, she was ready for this and she didn't act like a newbie trying to showcase her talent, she performed like an established artist guest staring on a show and this was her moment to shine.

* * *

Tyler and Matt made the biggest cheering sounds when Caroline arrived to the restaurant with Jeremy, they were like two young fans hysteric to see them and made the loudest commotion that included hitting the table with their hands.

"Does anyone want my autograph?" Caroline removed her hat with flair.

"Only on this." Tyler handed her the bill.

"I'm still waiting on my first paycheck." Caroline somberly said.

"Here are our tv stars." Matt elevated the mood by handing over his phone.

Caroline squealed when she saw herself on screen. "You recorded my debut on tv."

"And I've posted it on YouTube." Matt beamed.

"Look Jeremy, you look like such a heartthrob." She leaned over to him so that he could see it as well.

"I look petrified." Jeremy sighed.

"Oh, it already has seven views." Caroline made another squealing sound.

"I can work on your official channel and create an official Facebook account as well." Jeremy offered.

"You are such a sweetheart and I couldn't have done it today without you." Caroline made him blush.

"We're in this together." He quietly replied.

Caroline picked up her beer and raised it for a toast. "To my band, the very best in the world."

Tyler eagerly joined her. "I'm drinking to that."

But before Caroline could even taste her drink the bottle was taken away by Klaus who just arrived behind her.

"You have to start thinking of what you do when you're in public." He went as far as giving the beer back to one of the waiters around.

"Hey…" On the instant Caroline sulked.

"And you have to hurry with your meal because we have a photo session to choose the cover for your single."

"That's still three hours away Klaus." She complained like a little child about to throw a tantrum.

"You have to go through makeup and hair and choose your outfit." Klaus warned her with a scowl. "You have 30 minutes to wrap this little party of yours." He turned his back on the group and headed for the bar.

"Mr. Dude is so intense." Tyler whispered.

The others crumbled into a rebellious laughter that everyone tried to keep low.

"Maybe we can smuggle a beer into the photoshoot." Tyler kept his tone of secrecy.

"No…" Caroline glanced at the bar. "He's right, I have to start thinking like an artist and what I do on stage is as important as what I do out of it." She called the waiter next to order a salad and a bottle of water.

* * *

The budget from the label for a new artist was expectantly low and Caroline was faced with a scarce choice of wardrobe for the photoshoot, adding to the fact that she didn't have many clothes to pick from she didn't like any of them, the shoes were ok but far from dazzling her.

Finally she decided on a red dress that was tight and with sparkling beads embodied into it, she looked hot and it shouldn't be a problem getting a million sexy pictures with it, well, if things worked like she imagined them in her head anyway, today was all about finding out what was behind the cameras and she had a hard time adapting, she wasn't as comfortable as she thought that she would be, the photographer was a nice guy but she wasn't expecting the extra crew of 10 just staring at her while she tried to look like a model.

It only took her ten minutes to crash hard and realize that she had no idea what to do with her arms, how she was supposed to place her feet and that she had only one good expression, according to the photographer at least.

He kept asking her to _switch it up_, whatever that was and before she knew it an hour had raced away and still he kept on taking pictures and directing her to squat or to lift her foot, to lean to the side or to stick her butt out… this was turning into a nightmare fast and she started to grow tense by the minute.

It was an enormous blessing when the photographer asked her to take a break, Caroline couldn't run faster to the little changing room and honestly she was fighting a few nervous tears when Klaus joined her. "I thought that this would be easier."

"Because you are overthinking it."

Caroline slumped her shoulders. "How am I doing that? I can't even think because he's constantly telling me where to put my fingers and how to smile and how to flirt with my eyes… ugh." She covered her face with her hands frustrated but her comfort came when she was wrapped up in a warm soothing feeling and she uncovered her face to look at the man hugging her.

"You're tired, it's been a long day and you're not enjoying this because you are thinking too hard when you should approach this with a natural take."

"I'm finding it hard to be sexy in front of a bunch of strangers watching me attempting to be sexy." She grumbled with pouting lips.

"I assure you that they are as an easy crowd as your biggest fan back in Mystic Falls."

The reference made her smile. "Old Thomas was a big tipper."

Klaus chuckled at the same time that he stroked her chin with his thumb. "You aren't here for those outside, they are here for _you_."

She grazed her lip with her teeth. "It would help if you were in the room…" She hated when he simply disappeared.

"No one enjoys having the manager around."

Caroline poked the chain of his necklace, she needed him there.

With a smile he pulled away from her and left the room.

"Are you ready to go back?" A girl came to check on Caroline.

"Actually, no." She started to undress.

When she left the room she was wearing a pale-pink dress that was a bit vintage, it was long, loose and beautifully full of tiny ruffles, she was now barefoot and visibly more comfortable in this skin, she wasn't a sex kitten per say, she was a small town girl with a lot of confidence and all that started to flow out of her.

So much that the photographer asked for a chair so that he could capture Caroline's natural beauty in greater detail, her makeup was practically gone and as the afternoon started to kick in there was a light that he used in his advantage, his directions stopped being necessary now that Caroline was enjoying her photoshoot, mostly because Klaus stood behind the cameras and she kept her eyes on him.

* * *

It was night by the time they returned home, after a tiring afternoon she was then asked to look at thousands of pictures to decide which one she wanted on the cover, somehow Caroline hadn't connected the fact that she was in charge of her art to the detail that she was meant to choose _everything_ regarding her career.

The task of choosing one specific picture was impossible to achieve, she actually looked good in a lot of them and after narrowing down the 15 best ones she finally had enough and asked to go home, she wanted a hot bath and some food before she made any major decisions.

There was an actual feeling of relief when she stepped into the elevator inside of Stefan's building and she rested against the glass with a sigh, she closed her eyes, her feet were killing her and she was hungry and fatigued, not to mention cranky so it wasn't a smart move from Klaus to tell her that she still had to answer Jeremy's messages about her Facebook page.

"I'm giving him full artistic liberty." She decided to be snarky with Klaus.

"Today was a day full of amusement, wasn't it?"

Caroline glared at him. "I'll be dead before my single hits the stores if tomorrow is like this again."

He moved a hand inside of his jacket and took a small folded paper that he then handed over to Caroline, she was definitely suspicious as she unfolded the paper but her eyes were two huge orbits of surprise as she looked back at him.

"How does it feel to hold your first paycheck?"

She beamed. "It feels like I can do what I did today forever."

"There is a bigger paycheck waiting for you once we climb that wonderful Billboard hit list."

"What about your cut?" She asked as they left the elevator.

"That will only come when your record is placed in every shelve of every home in this country and abroad."

"That's months from now…" She wasn't too happy to learn the news.

He smiled at her as he opened the door of the apartment. "Time is relative."

Caroline sighed again, it was good to be home and she left Klaus on the computer heading for her bedroom, she left the door open and dragged her way to the bed where she allowed herself to fall face down, she crashed so hard that she actually bounced on the mattress but by God, it felt so good that she moaned loudly.

"Caroline?" Klaus called her from the door.

"Oh God, leave me alone, I just need to rest for an hour… or ten…" She grumbled against her pillow.

"Before that I require your attention for one more thing."

Caroline rolled over with a snap. "What do you want now?"

He turned the computer that he was holding towards her. "Your mother is on Skype."

Caroline's mouth went open, with regret but also with tenderness.

"She's on mute." He whispered while giving her the computer.

She leaned her head to the side emotional and wanting to thank him but she was too affected to do it.

He kissed her cheek softly. "She asked one of the deputies to instal it so that she could see you more often and I promised her that I would reserve the time in your schedule for it."

She gulped down a teary response and focused on her call as soon as he left her alone with her mother, she touched the little conversation icon and seconds later they were seeing each other.

"How does this thing work?" Liz was yelling at someone from her office.

"Hi mom." Caroline waved at her.

"Honey… I can see you!" Liz said amused.

Caroline sweetly smiled while settling on the bed and attentively looking at her mother, she was looking for any signs of weariness but Liz looked well. "How are you feeling mom?"

"The pills are working and I'm fighting the little bugger just fine, how about you? How was your first day as a big star?"

Caroline rolled her eyes. "I'm so tired mom… I had to do so many things and give so many interviews."

"Everyone at the police station saw the morning show, it was a big moment and I was so proud of my baby girl."

Caroline covered her red cheeks. "Could you tell that I was really nervous?"

"No honey and I think that was a good thing."

Caroline nodded.

"Are you having fun Caroline?" Liz had very few concerns about Caroline but it was important to know how she was feeling.

"It's the life that I always dreamed to have…" Caroline trapped her hair behind her ear waning down just a bit. "I just didn't know that it would be so full of other things rather than singing."

"When I saw that girl on my television I saw how radiant she was to be singing and I could see just how much she was doing what she was meant to be doing. You've never been afraid of working and I know that this is just the beginning honey but this is your time."

"You're going to make me cry mom…" Caroline complained already with a sting in her nose.

"It's a good time to hang up then." Liz quickly tried to hide how much she was touched by emotion as well. "I will talk to you soon."

"I love you mom." Caroline blew a kiss at the screen and then waved.

"I love you Carebear."

The childhood nickname totally melted Caroline and she closed the computer already missing her mother, at least she was responding well to the first treatments and actually being able to see her was alleviating.

She took her shoes off thinking that she had to thank Klaus when there was a knock on the door of her bedroom, she rushed as much as she was still able to and surprisingly found Klaus standing on the hallway with a pizza box in one hand and a bottle of wine and two glasses in the other.

"Chicken barbecue flavored and some Portuguese wine that will make you weep."

Caroline grabbed the pizza box effusively. "It smells so good." She rapidly took a slice and had a big bite out of it. "And it tastes sinfully." She groaned.

He poured a glass of wine for her. "Here's another sin for you."

"Am I allowed to drink?" She asked with a mouth full and a cocked eyebrow.

He knew that she was going back to the little moment at the restaurant. "Your image from now doesn't belong to you anymore, it's owned by the gossip magazines and the fans that will judge every item that you wear, every hairstyle will be analyzed exhaustively and people will discuss in forums for hours wether you have gained weight or not." He smiled. "What you regard as austerity is in fact protection for what we are able to avoid, the rest is out of our hands."

Caroline had a big portion of her wine. "What's my schedule tomorrow?"

"We have to leave at 5, we have a meeting set up with the video director and he's only available for an hour before he leaves New York for a week."

"Who is he?"

"Kol only said that he last worked with Rita Ora."

Caroline's mouth was a grinning smirk. "I hope that he's cute."

Unaffected Klaus carried on. "He's going to give you a few ideas and then you will decide with him which direction you would like to take."

"I'm tempt to do something provocative."

"It wouldn't fit the song." Klaus opinionated.

She scoffed with another slice of pizza in her hand. "No one cares about that, if I'm rolling around naked in a bed that's what people will remember, not the song."

Klaus narrowed his eyes a bit on the fence.

"It will be even better if I'm doing it with a really hot guy." She pushed on just to see if he would react at all. "I mean, if it's anything like the photoshoot it's going to take a lot of takes to get it right."

He lifted his finger because that reminded him of something and he took a picture from inside of his pocket. "From all of them, I think that I favor this one the most."

Caroline was left in awe, holding the picture was very different from seeing it on the computer and among all the others that she took, this one picture that he chose was unquestionably the best she ever looked, it showcased her from the waist up and she was sitting on the chair with her head turned to the side, she was looking straight at the camera with confidence and smiling lips, her skin looked so natural that she appeared to be made of porcelain and the light behind her was so beautiful that even the slight waywardness to her curls looked planed. "It's hard to believe that's me…"

"People are going to fall in love with you." He said admiring her instead of the picture.

She didn't care about others right now. "I wasn't expecting you to be like that today…" Caroline faced him slowly. "I like you more when you're not looking at me like a client."

Klaus rested the bottle on the nightstand and he seemed to be thinking of the right thing to tell her so Caroline moved the box away and came a little closer to him, she didn't want him to think too much about this, she only wanted what came from Klaus unfiltered.

"I thought that after that kiss we shared in my house things would be different between us…"

His eyes landed right on her gorgeous face, her voice was low and inviting in all the imaginable right ways and her fingers were starting a small trail on his chest, he swept her cheek with his hand. "We vouched to wait for the right time."

Her palm was flat on his chest now. "That doesn't mean that there has to be so much space between us."

"Outside of this building it's your world sweetheart, I control the show but I'm not part of it." He leaned over where her scent commanded his lips and all that he wanted was to kiss her. "In here however I am unable to conceal how much of my power is reduced to anarchy when you are around."

Caroline silently moaned when he rested his lips against hers, it was a languorous sweet kiss and he was so good at it that she instantly craved for more, this second time around she was the one pressing his lips strongly and caressing his neck, she wanted to make the kiss deeper but Klaus broke the kiss before she even had a chance to taste his tongue.

"It's not the time sweetheart…" he explained his action.

She liked stroking his neck so she left her hand there whilst she smiled. "I'm tired but I won't fall asleep halfway through it if we start something tonight."

"I need you focused Caroline." He gazed at her lips again before he really pulled away from her. "On what's important right now." He smiled a bit before turning away from her.

She didn't ask him to stay as he left the bedroom and she was sad as she slumped back into bed, she cuddled her pillow and sighed, she wasn't willing to wait another week for another kiss from him.

* * *

Klaus left his bedroom with a glance at his watch, it was nearly 5 in the morning and he intended to knock on Caroline's door but she was already waiting for him in the living room. "Good morning…" He greeted her slowly, she was all ready to leave and holding a few things for him.

"I'm going with that picture that you liked for the cover, I liked it as well and I sent Jeremy the list of things that I want him to do on my Facebook page. I know that we have a lot of interviews coming so I've asked him to link them all to the page."

"That's… entirely your responsibility." He easily gave up on what he could never master.

Smugly she smiled and left ahead of him.

It was still night and even for Klaus it was hard to be as awake as she was. "I assume that you are ready for another decisive day." He spoke as they reached the elevator.

Caroline walked in only after him and when she did she pressed _stop_ on the ride, then without a word she locked her lips with his, but not only that, she also pressed her body to his and kissed him avidly.

At first and mostly out of surprise Klaus kept the kiss candid but soon his initial response was replaced by the same fire she kissed him with, he did nothing to stop her invading tongue into his mouth and the kiss blossomed like the refrained desire that they felt for each other.

Sweeping and restless tongues that brushed against one another while Caroline laced her arms around his neck and he held her with a strength that she really wanted to feel unrestrained, their breaths were one unique rasping gush when they broke away from each other.

"Out there is my world but in here it's _our_ world." She stated her rules, ready as she was to take charge of what she wanted away from the public eye and closer to her heart.

With a striking brashness she placed space between them, pressed the elevator button again and shook her curls, she kept her eyes on the front but she knew the look that lived in his eyes, for sure now he was the one unwilling to wait another week for a kiss.

* * *

**Soundtrack**:

Disco 2000 – (Album version) - _Pulp_

Rill Rill – _Sleigh Bells _

Do you remember – _Jarryd James _


End file.
